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Quadruped Curse 2

By Theo Winters

Written for kitsune106

The mall was packed, far more than it normally was even for a long weekend, so there was very little room between all the people to move. For a normal person it would have been annoying, but for a vixen'taur like Bonnie it was like swimming upstream. She had to push her way through the crowds, and, while they were parting around her, it was still a challenge.

If she had any other choice she would have just waited for another weekend to get her shopping done, but not in this case. She needed a new top. The two she had were starting to get a bit ragged after the last couple of months of use. Even the one she was wearing wouldn't last much longer than the weekend.

And the weekend was all the time she had to get a new one. After that she would go back to being Ben, and she just couldn't bring herself to go shopping for women's clothing then. Not that she was very happy to do it at all. So she pushed on through the crowd until she came up to the store, the same store where things had changed for her. It wasn't a place she wanted to go back to, but it was the only shop she knew of in the mall that sold clothing in her size. Being a 'taur she was just bigger in general. The fact that she was extremely busty meant there wasn't any other choice.

Bonnie was so focused on getting where she was trying to go that she didn't notice the anthro who was walking in front of her until they collided. Between the two of them, her mass won, sending the other women tumbling to the ground with a startled yelp. Her iced coffee flew into the air and came back down right on Bonnie's cleavage, the lid popping off and soaking her with the contents. The cup rolled down her chest and fell onto the fallen anthro, the remainder of the coffee splashing over her as well.

She pulled back with a gasp, the chill from the iced coffee soaking through her bra and making her shiver. Ignoring it, she leaned forward to look down at the anthro on the floor, already trying to stumble out an apology but she came up short when she saw a familiar face. She didn't know where it was familiar from, but she knew she had seen it before. "I'm sorry," she finally managed to say.

The snow leopardess on the ground was rubbing the back of her head, her own top soaked with the remains of the coffee, the wet spandex showing the shape of her breasts and making her nipples easily visible. "It's okay, I should have been looking..." Her voice trailed off as her blue eyes focused on Bonnie. "Oh hey, it's you!"

That made Bonnie blush, offering a hand out for her. The leopardess took the proffered hand and used it to pull herself back onto her feet, which also gave the vixen'taur a chance to look her over. Not only was she wearing a tight top that was holding her ample breasts down, she also had on a pair of yoga pants that hugged every curve of her lower body and left her navel showing between them. It highlighted just how trim and fit she was, making her unbelievably hot. A small bag was slung over her shoulder, hardly big enough to hold more than a wallet. The pause gave her mind enough time to finally come up with where she had seen the anthro before.

"Oh yeah, you were at the _Murry Purry Club_!" she finally declared, happy to have put it together.

The feline giggled a bit, though the coffee soaking into her top and fur made it a little less cute. "That's right! I was hoping to see you again, but you never came back and never called."

"Yeah," she replied, her cheeks burning though the white fur as she lifted her hand up to rub at the back of her head. The move caused her top to pull tight across her chest, but it was still holding together for the moment. "I was kind of waiting for someone that night, and they never showed up. It sorta worked out in the end, but I really felt out of place that night."

That made her smile. "Yeah, you didn't seem to be have a very good time. It's too bad, because you looked really nice that night."

"Thank you," she replied again, still blushing, suddenly wanting to look anywhere but at the snow leopardess. Instead she glanced down and found herself looking right at her breasts as they were held in her tight top. Her nipples were hard against the material. "You, ah.. you looked really sort of good yourself," she finally said, stumbling over the worlds even as she tried to find someplace else to look.

That made the woman laugh. "Hon, I don't dress like this because I don't want people checking me out. You can look all you want. That's sort of the point," she said, bouncing a little on her toes and causing quite a lot of jiggling under the wet fabric.

Bonnie glanced back at her new friend as she made jello look stable, and found herself blushing even more. She shuffled a bit on her four feet and wrapped her arms under her own chest, which just put more strain on the buttons of her top. After having been soaked in coffee it was too much for the buttons. One finally gave way and started a chain reaction. One button failed after another, rolling down over the curve of her chest until the overflowing cups of her bra were on display for all to see.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" the anthro said with a little giggle, though she didn't avert her eyes. "Do you have another top?"

She shook her head. "That's why I came here. I needed a new one and most shops are too small for me."

"I can see that," the leopardess said with a smile. "And a new bra by the looks of it. Well, I was the one who wasn't looking where she was going, so I'll help you get some new ones. I'm Katlyn, by the way."

"Bonnie," she replied.

"A pretty name for a pretty lady," she said, moving up to her side and slipping her arm around the vixen'taur's back. "Come on, I know the perfect place for a girl of your dimensions," she said as she began to walk.

She wasn't sure how she felt about being called pretty. Katlyn wasn't the first to do so, and it always felt bit off. But somehow it sounded genuine coming from her. "But your top is soaked too," she finally said, but she didn't do anything to stop being dragged along with her. She used one hand to pull her top closed, hoping to keep some modesty.

That made the snow leopardess laugh. "Yeah, but it'll dry fast, and it's supposed to be skin tight," she replied with a smirk.

Bonnie couldn't think of anything to say to counter that, so instead she stayed quiet as they walked through the mall. The crowds weren't any better, but with the two of them, more people were willing to get out of their way. Katlyn lead her nearly all the way across the mall, up to a small shop called _Beautifour_ that had a number of 'taur mannequins populating the windows, each one wearing a different suit or dress that fit their body type. Some of them were quite busty as well.

"Here we are, the perfect shop for you!" she declared, not even stopping in front of it as she took Bonnie through the door.

It was sprawling on the inside. Mannequins and racks of clothing filled the floor space, though spaced out wide enough that a 'taur could easily slip between them. Relaxed street clothing was nearby, but further back she could see much nicer pieces of clothing, as well as some rather sexy items all the way against the back wall.

"Wow," was about all she could say, letting her hand drop away from her blouse, allowing it to flop open again.

"I know! I try to bring all my 'taur friends here, no matter their gender."

A moment later a centaur shop clerk appeared from around one rack. He was dressed in a snappy shirt along with a thin red tie and was wearing removable plastic horse shoes that clipped around the edges of his hoofs and were almost the same color as his tie. He glanced at Bonnie, and smiled a little when he saw the state of her clothing, but not in a leering way, more of an overall pleased way. "You, my dear vixen, are clearly in the need of some new clothing. Are you looking for just the one top, or will you be needing more?"

Katlyn spoke up. "A couple tops, and a few properly sized bras."

The centaur glanced down at her chest again. "Yes, the poor thing has seen better days and is hardly your size. Why do you even wear it? It must be dreadfully uncomfortable."

"It was... from a friend," she replied, not wanting to admit it was one she had stolen some years before. Something she used to make a habit off back when she was still just Ben, a fairly normal, if slightly pervy, human male. That was until he got caught stealing one from a lioness'taur named Thea. She had turned him into Bonnie as punishment. It took a while for her to learn her lesson, but she had. As a result she only became a vixen'taur on the weekend, being her old self the rest of the time. She had gotten rid of almost all her stolen bras, keeping only a couple to wear as Bonnie. But they were old and too small, her flesh rising up over the tops of the cups like bread dough.

"Must have been a very close friend," the clerk replied with a knowing smile, then gently took her hand and walked her towards the back of the store. In moments her ruined top was removed and the last bit of coffee in her fur patted dry. Before she had time to think, she had taken her into a changing room and was asking her to talk off her bra. She was so swept up in it she didn't even think about it, pulling off the old thing only to have it replaced by a length of measuring tape. The centaur worked quickly and professionally, taking a number of measurements before slipping away.

Bonnie found herself alone and topless in the dressing room, taking a moment to catch her breath. She was sharing the room with her own reflection in a floor-to-ceiling mirror. She turned to face herself, taking the chance to look over her own body, shifting a bit to move her flank into view. She did have a nice rump, not too big and not too small. It was a nice complement to her projecting chest.

She didn't like to think too much about it, but she was kind of hot.

A moment later then was a quick knock at the door before it opened wide enough for a paw holding a bundle of clothing to reach inside. "Here, try these on and see which ones fit."

"Thank you," she said as she took the collection of tops from Katlyn, and one by one, tried them all on. Most of them were too small for her, usually because of her chest. But a couple of them fit her, and even looked nice. One was a dark red that complemented the warm orange of her fur. The other was white and loose while showing off a lot of cleavage.

Pulling the red one on, she opened the door and stepped out.

Katlyn let out a low whistle. "I hoped that one would fit," she said, taking the discarded tops and putting them on a rack next to the dressing room. "I have a couple of others I know you'll love now that I have your size," she said with a wink before vanishing back into the store, just in time for the clerk to return holding a dark-blue bra in his hands.

Without having to be told she took the offered clothing and stepped back into the changing room, shucking off the top and pulling on the bra. Unlike most of the bras she had, this one had all the hooks in front, which made it easy to pull on. The cups fit her breasts perfectly, and with a little adjustment the straps sat comfortably on her shoulders. It was the best-fitting bra she had ever worn. While it didn't quite feel like it wasn't even there, it was only just.

Even better, it made her breasts look a bit fuller.

With a smile she pulled the top back on and buttoned it up. With the bra on, her breasts sat a little higher and a bit more prominent, but looked nice under the silky material. She gave it one more adjustment then stepped back out. The centaur was standing next to the door with a smile on his face, his pointed ears flickering slightly against his short-cut hair.

"It fits perfectly. Thank you. Can I get a couple more in that size?"

"Of course," he said and then slipped back between the racks.

Bonnie stood there, finally getting a few moments to look around the place. This far back, the racks and mannequins were all wearing nightwear. Some silky, some slinky, and some very practical-looking. She stepped over to the nearest rack, starting to paw through it and finding a cute green PJ top with a coffee theme across the front. It was extra-long, cut to hang to her knees in the front and to drape across her lower back. She held it up to her chest for a moment.

Suddenly, Katlyn was back at her side. "Oh, that's really cute! But it's too small for you," she said, then reached into the rack and pulled out a larger version of the same top, taking a moment to check the size. "Here, try this one. And these too," she gave her another armful of tops.

"Are you sure?" Bonnie asked, looking down at them. There must have been a dozen in her arms. It was a lot of clothing, much more than she really needed. She had no idea how much longer she would be spending her weekends on four paws. It was supposed to be temporary, and it had lasted for months... There couldn't have been much longer left.

"Of course I'm sure. Now go try them on," she said, then gently pushed the vixen'taur back towards the dressing rooms, taking the too-small PJ top from her at the same time.

With a sigh and a smile, she went back in and started going through the tops. They all fit well, and most of them looked good on her, but they were all really fancy. Most of them were made of thin marital that felt smooth against her fingers. It wasn't silk, but something close and with a slight shimmer to it. They were the sort of tops you wore out on the town if you were looking to have a fun time with someone. They seemed a bit too extravagant for her.

Out of the dozens of tops, she found two that she really liked, ones that she could also wear if she got called into work. She put them aside before trying on the nightshirt. It hung loosely around her torso, brushed the front of her knees as she walked, and it fit her chest. She looked really cute in it.

Bonnie pushed that thought of her mind as she pulled off the nightshirt and put it with the other tops she wanted before pulling the red one back on again. It seemed to be the least flashy out of all of them, only a step below professional. She stepped back out of the dressing room again. The ones she didn't want went onto the pile on the cart, and she kept the others in her arm. The centaur came up to her and took them off her hands. "I assume you'll want to wear these out?"

"Yes, please."

He nodded and reached around to clip the tag off the top, then removed the heavy sensor tag that was hanging from the hem. "I need to reach under your top," he warned.

She nodded.

He quickly slipped his hands under her shirt and gently felt around the back of her bra. A few moments later he snipped off the last tag and pulled his hands away. "Allow me to ring these up for you," he said with a smile and a nod before slipping back off into the store.

"Good choices," Katlyn said, having once again silently arrived at her side. By now her top had dried off, though it still gave a very nice view of her chest. It was hard for Bonnie not to look at it for more than a moment.

"Thank you, and thank you for your help," she replied.

The snow leopardess moved around until they were standing face-to-face, so close that their breasts were almost touching (which, in retrospect, wasn't really that close at all). Their eyes locked together, Katlyn's bright blue irises almost glowing under the florescent lights of the shop. "So, cutie, think I can get your number?"

Bonnie tried to say something, but her mouth just worked at chewing the air. She didn't know what to say to that, here was this attractive... very attractive women asking for her number, and she had no idea what to say. It had never happened to her before. Not as Bonine, not even as Ben. She had always been the one asking, usually while he was leering at them. Sometimes he even got their numbers.

Finally, she was about to stutter out something that sounded almost like it could have been an "Okay."

Katlyn smiled and pulled her phone out of her bag, tying something on it and handing it over to the vixen'taur.

She took the phone and quickly entered her number, double-checking to make sure it was right.

"Thank you," she said as she took the phone back, her face beaming as she slipped it back into her bag. After that, she leaned up and kissed Bonnie on the cheek. "Oh, and the clothing's on me, enjoy!" she said with as smile, quickly turning and walking away. Her hips were swaying with each step she took, her thick tail flitting seductively in her wake, even the yoga pants were highlighting every curve of her ass with every step she took.

It was only after she had finally slipped out of the shop that Bonnie's mind seemed to catch up with the world around her.

"Your purchases, ma'am," the centaur said, offering her a fancy bag filled with her new clothing.

It took a few seconds for her to react to that. "Thank you," she said as she took the bag from him and glanced inside. All her new clothing was stacked in the bag, including a number of bras in different colors. Sitting on top of all that was a rather lacy bit of lingerie with bra cups that wouldn't even reach her nipples. She was going to say something, but when she looked back up, the centaur was already on the other side of the store.

Bonnie shook her head. "For a guy with hooves, he's really light on his feet," she muttered. Holding the bag to her chest, she started to head back to her van. She would have to remember the shop in case she needed more bras. For now though, she was done with her shopping, had the rest of the weekend to herself, and had no idea what to do with it.

* * *

Ben was tired and hungry as he pulled his hatchback into the his parking slip outside of his apartment building. Work had gone longer than he would have liked, and due to an earlier rush he ended up missing lunch. It happened some days. Well, most days, actually. Something would always come up, plans would go sour and he had to run around trying to fix things.

Slipping out of his car, he kicked the door closed and walked to his door, one hand pulling out his keys while the other worked open the tie he had to wear. He hated the damn thing. It was always digging into the skin on his neck and felt like it was choking him. Yet if he left it loose enough to be comfortable, he got written up for it. The suit wasn't any better, but at least it didn't bind up every time he tried to move his head.

Funny enough, the couple times he had been called into work as Bonnie, her suit top and jacket had been a lot nicer and airier as well as lacking the damn tie. As usual, none of his coworkers noticed that the slightly pudgy event manager for the hotel had been replaced by a busty vixen'taur. Being naturally outgoing Bonnie also got along better with everyone then he did. Maybe it was the extra height?

Whatever the case, the moment he got inside he yanked off the tie and threw it onto the couch, then shrugged the jacket off, hanging it up in the hall closet. After that he went down to his bedroom so he could change. Shucking off the work shirt and pants he went to his closet, pulling the doors open to be greeted by a mix of clothing.

A surprisingly large number of the items inside belonged to Bonnie, things that she had bought over the past few months. Unlike all the other things in his home that changed when she did, such as his bed or his car, the stuff she bought stayed around when she was gone. It filled his closet with clothing and his bathroom counter with toiletries. He had even broken down and picked up a cheap vanity for her makeup and other effects, only because the one that showed up when she was around vanished with her, sending everything that had been on it falling to the floor.

All in all, it gave the impression that he had a regular girlfriend who hadn't quite moved in yet.

Grabbing a t-shirt and a pair of jeans, he pulled them on and moved the contents of his pockets over. That was one place where being Bonnie had life easier. She just had to change tops and everything else was in her purse. Yeah, it took longer to look good in the morning... or even just to go out, but that was just a part of being Bonnie.

Ben returned to the kitchen for a late dinner when he was surprised to have his phone start ringing in his pocket. Without even glancing at the screen he pulled it out and answered the call. "Hello?"

"Um... Hello... I'm not sure I have the right number, I'm looking for Bonnie," a familiar voice said over the line. Even with the distortion caused by the phone that seemed to muffle her voice, he recognized Katlyn's lovely tones.

Ben found himself freezing up, it had slipped his mind that Bonnie had given her his number, and he had no idea what to do about it. He would love to see more of the snow leopardess, but she didn't even know that he existed. She only wanted to talk with his female self, and it wasn't like he could get her on the phone.

Closing his eyes, he tried to turn himself into Bonnie by pure force of will, but it didn't work. Finally he let out a sigh, knowing he was going to have to try and heal with this himself. "I'm sorry, she's not here right now."

"Oh," Katlyn said, the word sinking down as she sounded both dejected and disappointed.

A feeling of sick horror suddenly filled him, he knew exactly what it must have sounded like to her. She was calling a cute girl and some random guy picked up the phone and told her she wasn't around.

"I'm her roommate," he quickly said, the words almost flowing together.

There was a few tense moments before Katlyn spoke again. "You're her roommate?" she asked in disbelief.

Ben sighed and nodded, not that she could see it. "Yes, she's my roommate. We share my apartment." Not quite a lie. "She's out until this weekend." Also not technically a lie. "If you want to talk with her you should call her early on Saturday morning. She'll be here by then."

There was a pregnant pause over the line, followed by a frustrated grunt. "Are you sure?" she finally asked.

"I'm sure, she'll be here then. I'm Ben by the way."

"Well then Ben, tell her that I will call her on Saturday morning," was the curt reply.

He didn't want to let he go, not yet. "I... I can take a message for her if you like."

"Please tell her I will call back on Saturday morning. Goodbye," she said, then hung up the phone.

"Goodbye," he said softly, pulling the phone away from his face. Looking down at it she saw her number still glowing on the screen. Quickly he saved it under Katlyn's name. Even as he did so he was questioning why he was doing it. Yeah, she was sexy, but what could he do about it? She wasn't interested in him. She was interested in Bonnie.

And what if something did start happening between Katlyn and Bonnie? It wasn't like she was around more than two days a week, and even that wasn't going to last forever. Sooner or later the spell that turned him into Bonnie would be gone, and the vixen'taur along with it. It could have been next week or next year, but someday she would be gone. He hated that.

What kind of relationship could they have with that hanging over them?

He collapsed onto the couch and put his face in his hands, his belly twisting up in a knot. What could he do? The obvious answer was to do nothing, to never contact Katyn again as Bonnie, just letting her go and ignoring her and how it made him feel. Yet that felt like exactly the wrong thing to do. He wanted to get to know her more. He wanted to spend time with her. If he could only do that as Bonnie... well, he was okay with that.

What he really needed was someone to talk to about this, but whom could he even call? It wasn't like he could sit down with one of his coworkers and explain how he was two people at the same time, and how one was developing feelings for this cute girl. About the only person who would even believe him was Thea, but he had no interest in talking to the lioness'taur who had cast this spell on him.

At least it was Wednesday. That gave him two more days to figure out what he was going to do about this whole mess and figure out what he was going to do when she called on Saturday morning.

* * *

By the time Saturday morning rolled around, Bonnie found that she still had no idea what she was going to do. She had finally resorted to ignoring it and hoping it would go away, but that didn't do anything to loosen the knot in her lower stomach. She had only been up for a few minutes when the phone finally rang, causing her to let out a surprised yelp and glare at her phone. Katlyn's name was glowing on the screen, almost taunting her. She was scared about what was going to happen when she answered the phone. What was Katlyn going to say? What was Bonnie going to say?

The only thing she knew for certain was that she had to answer the phone. Letting it go to voicemail was the worst possible thing she could do. On the third ring she swiped her finger over the screen to answer it and lifting it to her head.

"Hello?" she asked, her voice almost squeaking.

A sigh of relief came over the line. "Bonnie. It's good to hear from you."

Bonnie smiled, the knot in her belly loosing up the moment she heard the leopardess's voice. "I feel the same. I guess you got to talk to Ben," she said, sitting on the floor next to the couch and wrapping her tail around her hips.

"Is he really your roommate?"

"Yeah, roommate is a good way to describe it. We've never dated... he's really not my type," she explained. It had the benefit of being true as well.

That made her Katlyn laugh, a happy laugh that seemed clipped by being sent through the phone. "And how about me? Am I your type?"

"Absolutely," she replied, not even having to think about it.

She laughed again and was probably smiling as well, it sounded like she was smiling. "Well then, how about you and I get together tonight for some fun?"

Now it was Bonnie's turn to smile, her tail starting to swish happily against the floor and her hips. "I would really, really like that."

"How about we meet at the _Murry Purry Club_ tonight at eight. Then I can finally buy you that drink."

That sent a small jolt through her body, running from the tips of her ears all the way to her tail. She hadn't been back to the club since her first night as Bonnie. She had been tricked into visiting it to see firsthand how it was to be treated more like an object then a person, yet that hadn't really been what had happened. It hadn't been the best of times, but most of the people there had been nice enough, and it had been much better than her last visits as Ben. She had no reason not to go back there... even if her nerves didn't agree.

"Sure, eight o'clock tonight at the club. I'll be there," she replied.

"Wonderful, and make sure to wear something sexy," Katlyn teased before the call ended.

The vixen'taur lowered her phone, her head spinning. It had been so long since anyone had asked her out on a date, not since her first year in college. After so long she had assumed it would never happen to her again, and it felt strange now that it had. Strange and nice. And it wasn't just because of being asked out, it was also because of who it was. She wanted to go out with the sexy feline, wanted to get to know her in every possible way.

She set the phone down on the couch and got back onto her four paws, heading back to the bathroom. Turning the light on she looked at her own reflection, seeing the now comfortably familiar vixen'taur in the mirror, fur still matted on one side of her from sleeping. Her nightshirt was twisted and bunched up under her large breasts. If she was going to be on a date she needed to look her very best, and right now she was as far from that as possible.

With a single motion she grabbed her nightshirt and pulled it over her head, dropping it on the toilet as she climbed into the bathtub. Of all the things that changed when she turned into Bonnie, she wished that the tub had been one of them. It was the same one that seemed to come with every single apartment ever. While she could fit into it, it was only by inches, and she kept hitting the walls no matter how she moved.

She turned on the water, feeling it washing down her back and soaking into her fur and hair. It warmed up quickly, which made it all the more relaxing. Closing her eyes, she just allowed herself to drift away for the moment, just enjoying the feeling of the water falling over her, as well as the glow she felt inside.

Somehow, after spending the last two days stressing out about what she was going to tell Katlyn, accepting a date was the last thing she had expected or wanted... yet it was exactly the right thing to do. In fact it was the only thing she could have done. She wanted to know more about the snow leopardess, to find out what she liked and didn't like. All she really knew about her was that she liked looking sexy and wearing yoga pants, and pretty much nothing else.

But she wanted to learn. Oh, how she wanted to learn. Tonight was going to be the first step in that. The only hitch was that the more she found out about Katlyn the more Katlyn would find out about Bonnie, and eventually Ben. They could pretend that they were roommates, but that wouldn't last forever. The longer she kept it hidden the worse it would be when it was finally found out.

She just had no idea how what she should do about it, or if there was anything that could be done.

* * *

Bonnie managed to be simultaneously excited and terrified, the two emotions fighting in her lower belly as she pulled her van into the parking lot of the _Murry Purry Club_. All that was running through her mind was the fact that she was going on a date with a gorgeous woman, and she had no idea how to act.

Half of her was trying to talk herself out of going, telling her that she was making a huge mistake, that Katlyn would never want to be with someone like her and that being a guy most of the time killed any chance with a woman who was only interested in Bonnie. The other side of her was galloping around in circle, squealing like a little girl about how amazing this was going to be and how awesome Katlyn was.

In the middle of all that was a small little part of her that just wanted to find out what was going to happen.

Turing off her van, she climbed out and put her four paws on the ground. While the van was necessary if she wanted to get around as a 'taur, she didn't really like it. It was bland and had no personality other the being white and boxy. Ben's hatchback was much more her speed but it was just too small for her.

She took a moment to adjust her top, one of the flashy ones she had gotten the weekend before that showed off her cleavage. After that, she checked her makeup in the side mirror, happy with how it looked. It was understated, but not so much as to be unnoticeable. It made her eyes stand out and gave a nice bit of color to her cheeks. The small hoop earrings she was wearing swayed a little bit every time she flicked her ears, causing them to glitter in the light.

Brushing her hair back she started walking towards the door of the club. Just like last time all the attention was on her. People-humans and anthros alike-watched as she came up to the line at the entrance. Before she even reached the end the bouncer at the door motioned for her to come forward and just let her right in. Last time, it had made her feel vaguely uncomfortable. This time, she couldn't help but smile at the attention.

The inside of the club was filled with loud music and a crowded dance floor, and almost everyone seemed to be having a good time. She spotted one other 'taur out on the dance floor, a chubby rabbit'taur who was having a good time dancing by himself.

As she approached the bar she saw a familiar tail in a long silver dress sitting on a stool. Bonnie walked up next to her and touched her gentry on the shoulder. "Hey there," she said.

Katlyn turned, her facing lighting up as she did. "You made it!" she said, then leaned over and gave the vixen'taur a quick kiss on the cheek. "What do you want to drink?"

She rubbed where the kiss had landed, feeling a bit lightheaded at the contact. "A Long Island Iced Tea, please," she told the bartender.

The snow leopardess reached up and took Bonnie's hand in hers. "You look fantastic. You should be a model."

That made her blush as she smiled. She had been a 'model' for a single day in the past as part of her punishment, and it wasn't a memory she was particularly proud of. "I don't know, I just work in an office."

"Lucky office," she mused, taking a sip of her beer even as the bartender brought Bonnie's drink.

Pushing one of the stools away, she sat down on her rump as she picked up the drink and took a long swing of it. "I'm sorry that I couldn't call you during the week. I'm not usually able to talk then."

"Yeah, what's that about?" Katlyn asked, resting an elbow on the bar. "I mean, a girl like you having a guy for a roommate? I find it hard to believe you didn't at least date once."

A frown fluttered over the vixen'taur's face as her head sank a little bit. This was getting into areas she wasn't really sure wanted to talk to her about, at least not yet. "No, we never dated. I don't... I'm not really... I've never been interested in guys. They just never did anything for me," she admitted. It was one thing she and Ben had in common, though for him it was just normal, but for her it felt like a confession. The only time she had ever had any interest in a guy was when she was Bon-Bon, and even then it wasn't exactly a strong urge.

"And he's never put _any_ moves on you? Not even 'accidently' walking in on you when you're in the shower?" she asked in disbelief.

She shook her head, and took another drink to keep from having to say anything.

Katlyn smiled. "Well, he sounds like he's a pretty decent guy, not like some of the ones I've run into around here."

"I wouldn't really say he's decent," Bonnie muttered as she took another drink.

"Oh, so he does have a secret pervy side?" she teased.

That made her roll her eyes even as she found herself laughing at it. "It's not even that secret."

Katlyn rolled her eyes. "Yeah, some guys just can't control themselves. There was this one jerk I ran into here last year. He was a real pervert. He followed me around for half the night, trying to grab my tail or get his hands under my skirt. When I told him to get out of my face, he laughed and told me that I was putting on too much of a show to leave alone. So I dumped my beer on his head," she smirked at the memory. "That little bastard grabbed my tits before they threw him out."

A jolt of fear ran through Bonnie, the fur on her tail puffing out in every direction. She knew exactly what Katlyn was talking about, as that had been Ben's last visit to the club! He had been so focused on her tits and ass that he never paid attention to her face, and thought getting soaked with beer was worth it just to get his hands on her, even if for a moment.

"Bonnie, are you okay? You're white as a ghost," Katlyn asked, suddenly worried.

She looked away for a moment, not wanting to show her emotions, though her ears still betrayed her. "That was Ben," she said softly, the gulped down the last of her ice tea, feeling it burn as it washed down her throat. This wasn't going anything like she wanted it to. The last thing she wanted was for Ben to become the focus of conversation, to say nothing of letting her know just how much of a pervert he used to be.

She glanced back at the snow leopard, watching a number of emotions washing over her face. "How could you live with that asshole?" she asked, a hint of anger building in her eyes.

There was no simple answer for that, and all she could do was whisper. "He's better now," though it was lost in the general sounds of the club. She had no idea what she was going to do. How could they have a relationship if Katlyn hated Ben? That was who she was most of the time and it wouldn't be possible to hide that from her. What was she going to do, do something stupid like trying to keep her and Ben apart, yet only being able to see her as Bonnie on the weekend? That wasn't a relationship, that was a sitcom!

Glanced at the bar, she was surprised to see that her drink had been replaced. She grabbed the glass and drank half of it in one gulp. Katlyn was looking at her, her ears laying back in her hair as she waited for a real answer.

"There is an simple explanation," she started, but that explanation never came, her tongue growing thick in her mouth.

"Which is?"

Finally Bonnie just slumped down, almost wilting in front of the lovely woman. "It's because I'm Ben," she admitted, just loud enough for the snow leopardess to hear.

The anger was replaced by confusion. "What do you mean you're Ben? How could you be-" she stopped, then let out a sigh as she started to rub her temple with the fingers on one hand. "Thea. That's why you were looking for Thea that night, wasn't it?"

"Someone told me she would be here, but she wasn't. She turned me into Bonnie to punish me for how I used to act, and I deserved it," she said.

"You think being a woman is punishment?"

"No, I love it!" Bonnie sputtered, the words coming faster then she could think about them. "She made me see just how horrible I was treating woman, and I'm working hard not to do that anymore. I don't want to be 'that little bastard.' I want to be..." She paused and looked away, but only for a moment before she looked into Katlyn's blue eyes. "I want to be the sort of woman you would want to be with."

There were a few moments of awkward silence and Bonnie took the chance to finish her drink. As the silence stretched out she starting thinking that she should just go. She was about to get up with Katlyn reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm having a hard time thinking of you as both you," she motioned towards the vixen'taur with her other hand, "and that pervert. You're not like that at all. You're a nice person. You listen. You don't act like a creep."

"I used to," she replied. Finding that she already had another Long Island Iced Tea right by her hand, she picked it up and took a slow sip, using it to trying to think about what she should say next. "I did a lot of things I'm not proud of. I know better now. She turned me into this to show me how it felt to be treated like nothing but a sex object. That's was the whole point of my visit that night, to see how it felt."

Katlyn frowned, lifting her had to stop Bonnie for a moment. "Wait, wait. Thea sent you here to be treated like a sex object?"

She nodded. "She didn't really send me here, but she was waiting outside when I left. That conversation didn't go well."

Closing her eyes, Katlyn rubbed the her temples again, a frown growing on her muzzle. "Okay, I think you, me and Thea need to sit down and talk about this. Does she know where you live?"

"Yeah?"

She dug her hand into her purse and fished out her cell phone. She fiddled with it for a moment before lifting it up to her ear.

Bonnie just sat there, sipping at her drink as she tried not to listen to the one-sided conversation, not completely sure what was going on. Katlyn was talking in a low voice that was almost drowned out by the sound of the club, but now and then her voice would rise up with barely-contained anger.

Finally, she pulled the phone away, shoved back into her purse, pulled out a credit card and slid it over to the bartender, indicating that she would be paying for them both. "Thea is going to meet us at your place in an hour. Come on, you can drive."

She blinked and looked down at the half finished drink in her hand. "My place? And are you sure? I've had like three of these so far."

That made Katlyn laugh, a sound that lightened the moment just a little bit. "Bonnie dear, you're a 600 pound vixen'taur. That's not even enough to get you buzzed," she said as she signed the receipt and took her card back. "Now come on, let's go."

Bonnie nodded and stood up, her tail tucked low as they left the club together, much to the jealous looks of a number of the other clubgoers. They went out to where her van was parked, and she opened up the sliding door, climbed inside, and reached over to unlock the passenger side door.

"This isn't the car I would have expected from you," Katlyn commented as she climbed into the front seat.

She shook her head as she settled down on the bench in front of the wheel. She had to tuck her back paws under the bench to get comfortable, her front paws resting on the pedals. If she thought about it, it was a weird way to drive. But, as a 'taur it felt natural to her.

Once they were on the road, they fell into an uncomfortable silence. Katlyn had her arms crossed over her chest and was looking out the side window as they drove down the highway. Bonnie found herself looking over towards her every time they came to a stop, wanting to see her do or say something, but she didn't seem to move. She was just frozen in place, with not even her ears or her fluffy tail flicking.

She was tempted to turn on the radio, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. The silence felt more appropriate than pointless noise. Now and then, she tried to say something, but all she managed was a few sounds that never managed to start being words.

After forty endless minutes they pulled into her parking spot. She turned the engine off and looked over at the snow leopardess. "This is my place."

"I would hope so," she replied as she slipped out of the van. Bonnie did the same, locking the doors behind her. Moving to the apartment door, the vixen'taur opened it, letting out a sigh as the lights came on. "I'm sorry. I wasn't really expecting anyone, so it's a bit of a mess," she admitted, her ears hanging down slightly.

Katlyn looked around the living room. Under the normal light instead of in the club, her makeup looked a bit too bold and sharp. It wasn't really a bad look for her, but it clearly wasn't the way she wore it day-to-day. Walking across the room she dropped down on the couch, her eyes looking around the room before settling back on Bonnie.

She found herself wilting under the look. "Would you like me to get you something to drink?"

"I want to know what happened, what Thea did to you, and why," was her reply, resting her hands in her lap, the fingers laced together.

Bonnie wilted even more, blushing through her fur making the red even brighter as she walked over to the couch. She couldn't properly sit on it, so instead she sprawled her forelegs over one of the arms. "I stole her bra," she admitted.

It clearly wasn't what she was expecting to hear as Katlyn started to giggle, then tried to make herself stop and look serious but still let out a couple more snorts. "Her bra?"

A few moments later Bonnie found herself laughing softly as well. It did sound absurd when she said it like that. "I know, I know, but that's really all I did to her," she explained.

That had finally seemed to break some of the ice as things started to warm up between them. Bonnie explained everything that had happened: stealing Thea's bra when she was in the changing room, getting caught and waking up as Bonnie the next morning. Everything that had happened during her last visit to the _Murry Purry Club_, waking up the next day as Bon-Bon and how it felt to be her. She found herself blushing even brighter as she told that part of her story and of the pornographic photo shoot she had been a part of. Now that she could look back it after a few months, she had mixed feelings about the whole thing.

Katlyn listened intently, worry lines crossing her face as her ears slowly rocked backward and sank down almost until it they were pressed into her hair. Her tail starting to thrash around so much that she finally had to pull it into her lap to hold it still, though that didn't always work. Just as she was wrapping up the story, they were interrupted by a hesitant knock at the door.

The snow leopard was on her paws in the moment, stalking over to the door, the tip of her tail moving almost too fast to see. She pulled the door to reveal Thea standing on the other side. "Thea," she said to the lioness'taur, her voice dripping with ice.

"Katlyn, what's going on? You weren't making much sense on the phone," she said.

Katlyn stepped to the side, allowing the lioness to enter the apartment. Thea and Bonnie locked eyes for a moment, which caused Bonnie to look down at her forepaws. Well, she tried to, but her cleavage was blocking the view.

"The three of us need to have a talk," the snow leopardess said, closing the door and walking back to the couch. Thea followed her, lying down in front of the couch and tucking her tail under her bulk of her lower body. She must have just been lying around at home as she was wearing just a worn t-shirt for a band that had broken up years ago. The stretched-out neck left the blue strap of her bra exposed.

Thea looked between Bonnie and Katlyn, a hint of confusion on her face. "You two dragged me away from a really good movie, so you had better have a good reason for it."

"Thea, how long have we know each other?" Katlyn asked.

The lioness didn't even have to think about it. "Twelve years, since college."

She nodded. "And after all that time, you still haven't learned you can't use your magic to try and fix everything."

Thea bristled at that. "You make it sound like I'm throwing spells around willy-nilly."

Katlyn shook her head and sighed. "But that's exactly what you do. You've done a lot of idiotic things over the years, but I think this has to be the dumbest thing you've ever done!"

"You mean what I did to Ben here?" Thea replied, glancing at the vixen'taur with a slightly dismissive huff, the light catching on her glasses and obscuring her eyes as she did so. "He deserved it."

Snorting in anger, Katlyn rose up to her full height while still sitting on the couch, which wasn't quite at eye level with Thea. "He deserved it? That's your reason for sending him to the _Murry Purry Club_? What did you think would happen to her there? Or maybe what you were hoping would happen? Because from where I'm sitting it seems like you were hoping for the worst possible outcome."

Her eyes narrowed. "I never-"

"You turned him into a very sexy and very chesty vixen'taur, the sort of woman who can't help but attraction attention wherever she goes. Knowing you, I bet you added a dose of that glamour spell you love so much just to make sure of it."

Letting out a sigh, Thea rolled her eyes. "Yes, that was the point! He told me to my face that he only thought of women as being there for him to drool over. So I made sure that he found out exactly what that would feel like. No matter where Bonnie went, someone would be lusting after her."

Katlyn jumped out of her seat to stand in front of the lioness'taur, jabbing her finger right into her left breast. "And how would sending her to the club teach her anything?"

"I didn't send her to the club, she went there herself! I hate that damn place, and I would never force anyone to go there, not even him!" Thea replied.

Bonnie was starting to get tired of watching the two of them talk about her like she wasn't even in the room, so she finally spoke up. "Yet you were waiting for me outside of the club."

With a sigh, Thea shook her head, her ears twisting backwards. "Of course, I was following you so I could see whether you learned anything. When I found out you had gone to the club I was sure that would have been more than enough, but it just made you double down on your stupidity."

The vixen'taur sighed and placed a hand on her face. "Do you want to know what happened to be that night at the club? What horrible thing happened when everyone was watching and lusting after me?"

There was a pause, but she didn't respond, so Bonnie just continued on.

"I got hit on by a lot of guys, and with one exception, everyone moved on when I told them I wasn't interested and was waiting for someone else. Everyone was nice and respectful, man and woman," she glanced over at Katlyn, giving her a small smile, but it wasn't returned. At the same time something occurred to her, something she had never thought of before. "You wanted people to treat me like a sex object, but if anything I got to see how people are supposed to act."

"So nothing at all happened?"

Bonnie allowed a hint of a smile to sneak onto her face. "I got a number, one that I should have called sooner. The only thing bad that happened was running into you, and we pissed each other off even more."

"So you just assumed something bad happened to Bonnie in the club," Katlyn snapped, dropping back down onto the couch with a soft thump. "You never bothered to find out the truth, to even ask her what had happened. And isn't it lucky that she went to the _Murry Purry Club_? There are much worse places she could have gone, the sort of places where the people aren't willing to take no for an answer, or where the bartenders are happy to look the other way. Think about that. What could have happened if she went into one of those places with a spell on her to force her to be the center of attention?"

Thea paused, starting to protest but the words dying in her muzzle. There was a growing look of horror on her face as her whole body seemed to just slump downwards. "Oh..." she said, almost in a whisper.

"Yeah, 'oh.'"

Silence fell over the three of them, all three women trying not to look at each other. Bonnie had never thought about what could have happened that night. She had no idea how to watch herself at a club. Anything could have happened. If it weren't for that wolf telling her that Thea would be at the club, she would have headed to one of the seedier places downtown. The sort of place he usually hung out when looking for a good time. The sort of place where the old version of Ben didn't stand out at all.

Finally, Thea sighed and shook her head. "That's not what I wanted to happen. I wanted to teach him a lesson, to show him why what he was doing was wrong. To get him to see us as more than sex objects. I didn't want him to get hurt."

"And it worked," Bonnie replied. "I learned my lesson about how it makes someone feel when they are treated like that. I did a lot of unpleasant things in the past, the sort of things that got beer dumped over my head. I'm trying to make up for it, trying to not be a creep or a pervert like I used to be. I understand just how much it sucks to be in that position, and I want to be better than that now."

Katlyn reached out and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "You are doing better," she said softly.

Thea frowned a bit, her eyes turned down and her chin tucked against her neck. "You're right," she admitted. "I'll undo the rest of the spell and you can going back to being Ben."

"No! Don't do that," Bonnie cried out as she rose up onto all fours, the words coming out unbidden.

The two other women looked at her for a few moments as Bonnie realized what she had just said, putting her hands on her muzzle to stop any more from escaping.

"You've learned your lesson, so there is no point in letting it linger anymore," Thea finally replied with a shrug as she stood up as well.

Bonnie closed her eyes. She wanted to collect her thought for a few moments to try and understand why she would want to stay under this spell, but the words just flowed out on their own. "I like being Bonnie. I don't know why, but I like being her and I want to keep being her. She's a part of me, just as much as Ben is, and even Bon-Bon. I'm... they... we are all me and I'm all of them. Don't take her away from me. Even if I can only be her for the weekends. Even if I have to try and balance a dual life. Please don't take her away," she begged. The words were a surprise, but she knew they were true. Every last one of them.

Thea looked at her in silence for a few moments before she reached up like she was going to grab Bonnie's shoulder, but thought better of it. "I won't take her away from you, I promise."

"Thank you," she whispered with relief, dropping back down against the couch.

Thea reached up to adjust her glasses slightly. "I'll repower the spell when I get home so it won't fade away."

Bonnie didn't know what to say. 'Thank you' seemed both too much and too little at the same time. A moment later, she felt a hand on her flank. She didn't even have to look to know who it belonged to.

Thea slowly backed away, sadness lining her face and weighing her tail down to trail in her wake as she turned and fled the apartment.

"You really want to stay Bonnie?" Katlyn asked.

Letting out a sigh, she rubbed her hands over her face, surprised to find the fur wet from tears. "I don't know. I just don't want to stop being her. I don't know why... she's... I'm..." she struggled to find anything to say, but she couldn't. She didn't know the words. Her feelings were just too big and too vague, and they seemed to weigh down on her like nothing she had ever felt before.

For the very first time in her life, she found herself wondering who she really was. It was a question she no longer had an answer to. All she could do was pull Katlyn into a hug and hold onto her like her life depended on it.

* * *

Coffee... Bonnie could smell coffee in the air, and it was enough to slowly pull her out of her slumber. Lifting her head, she blinked her eye clear of the sleep that hung heavily over her. She had been sleeping with her head on the couch cushion while her lower body was sprawled out on the floor and still wearing her outfit from the club. One arm had been pinned under her chest, while the other had been draped over her muzzle. The odd position made her back ache, right at the point where her upper and lower bodies meet.

Slowly, she lifted her head up, reaching down to rub at the sore point, which helped a bit. Her mind went back to what had happened the night before, and it left her feeling drained.

"Coffee?" Katlyn said, sitting down on the floor next to Bonnie and offering her a cup.

She blinked in surprise, looking at the snow leopardess and not quite processing that she was there. She was wearing one of Bonnie's nightshirts, which was too big for her and hung almost to her knees. She was holding two cups of coffee, one in each hand.

Bonnie took the offered cup and held it in her hands. "Thank you," she said, taking in a deep breath of the smell. It was almost as good as the taste itself. "And thank you for staying with me last night."

She smiled. "Well, you were kind of a mess last night, and I wasn't going to leave you alone like that."

Bonnie slipped at the coffee. It was strong and black, and it cleared away the cobwebs from her mind. "And your car is still at the club," she added with a small laugh.

"I wasn't going to say anything."

She rubbed the back of her arm over the matted fur on her face, and shifted her body around to rest her body against the couch while resting an arm on the cushions. Katlyn sat in front of her, her legs crossed and her tail pulled into her lap. They looked at each other for a few moments, neither one quite sure what to say to the other.

Finally, Bonnie spoke. "I'm really sorry about everything I did to you that time at the club, including groping you like that. That was a real dick move on my part."

"And you made me ruin a good beer. That's nearly unforgivable," Katlyn replied, trying to smile before letting out a weak sigh. "It was a dick move. Still, I can see just how much you regret it, so apology accepted... but you still owe me a beer."

"Of course, and thank you," she said as she took another sip of her coffee. "I sometimes can't believe how I used to be, and it's not like I thought it was normal. I mean, I knew I was being a dick to every woman around me, but I just didn't care. I wasn't always like that. My first year in college I had a girlfriend and was just like every other guy. After that, though, I don't know. I guess I started to let myself sink into it. I enjoyed it. I knew I loved the thrill of stealing pieces of clothing from women. Hell, I thought I was being so clever when I took Thea's bra from right under her nose," she frowned and sighed again. "I deserve this."

"No, no you don't," Katlyn replied, placing her hand on top of one of Bonnie's forepaws. "What Thea did to you went too far. She just wanted to lash out at you and make you feel the way you made her feel: violated."

Bonnie shook her head. "I don't think I ever really felt violated. I felt used as Bon-Bon in that porn shoot. I really wasn't a person, just a prop. I had always thought that being in porn must have been awesome, getting to bang all those hot chicks... but it really just sucked."

Katlyn nodded, moving a little bit closer.

"And do you want to know what the worst part of it all is?"

"What?"

Bonnie sighed and looked down at her coffee. "The pictures turned out hot, I mean like really really hot."

There was a moment of silence before a laugh tried to escape Katlyn's muzzle, even as she tried to hold it back, resulting in more of a snort that escaped out of the corner of her mouth and nose. A second laugh slipped out right after. Soon, it grew into a much larger belly laugh. Bonnie found herself joining in, laughing at the absurdity of it all.

As the moment passed, she held her coffee cup to her chest and gave the other anthro a shy look. "Now that you know about me... would you be interested in going on another date?" she asked, her eyes flicking down to her chest then back at up Katlyn's eyes.

Setting her coffee cup down on the floor, she leaned forward and gently stroked the back of her hand over the fur on Bonnie's cheek. "I would like that a lot," she said, then leaned in and gave her a soft kiss on the lips. It lasted for only a moment, but it made her head spin in the best of ways.

"And I want to meet Ben. He owes me an in-person apology," she added a moment later.

Bonnie couldn't help but smile. "That's only fair."

Katlyn nodded and returned the smile. "For now, though, you have to show me those pictures," a flash of worry washed over her face. "You know... if you're okay with that."

"I think I'm fine with it," she replied, then gave Katlyn a kiss of her own. She still had no idea who she was anymore, where Ben ended and Bonnie began, or if there really was any difference between them. She had no idea how she could even start finding the answers. But for now, that could wait. For now, instead of searching for answers, she would settle for a bit of happiness.

* * *

Ben grabbed the last box out of the back of his van, hefting it up into his arms. After a month of spending every night loading up the car one box at a time, this was finally the very last box of his stuff. It officially meant he was nearly moved out of his old apartment and into Katlyn's condo. Her place was twice the size of his, and had more than enough room for the both of them, no matter who he was at the time.

He used his hips to slide the van door closed, making sure it latch into place. The van itself was a compromise between what he needed between Ben and Bonnie. It was decent as vans went, and was worth the trade-in on his old hatchback. Tt also meant he didn't have to worry about what car he would be driving on any given day of the week. It was always the same, other then the arrangement of the driver's bench.

Climbing up to the second floor, he pushed the door open and slipped inside. Katlyn wasn't back from work yet, so he had a little time before dinner to get the last of the boxes unpacked instead of just leaving them lying around. There were still a few things back at his old apartment, but they were things he didn't need any more, including his old bed. The weekend before Katlyn and Bonnie had gone shopping for a new one big enough to hold both of them.

It was strange to think that they had been together for almost nine months and it had some interesting effects on both of their lives. Katlyn was one of the very few people who was aware of both Ben and Bonnie, unlike the rest of the world, who always remembered him as he currently was. Even his parents' memories changed when he did. They remembered adopting Bonnie when she visited, but still remembered Ben when he was there. It was weird to have his parents change from being related to him to not, but they still loved Bonnie just as much as they loved Ben.

Moving into the bedroom, he set the box down on the low bed and started moving the contents to the dresser. It was a mix of both his underclothing and Bonnie's and somehow, the vixen'taur had three times as much. He didn't have a problem with that. He liked to feel sexy, after all.

The fact was that Bonnie had started to rub off on Ben in a number of different ways. He had found himself becoming more open and friendly with his coworkers, and he had even managed to make new friends, both with his coworkers, and more importantly, with the majority of Katlyn's friends. Well... all but one.

Ben was just putting the last of the clothing away when he heard the front door open. Pulling the box off the bed he moved quickly to the living room, smiling when he saw the snow leopardess coming in through the door. She smiled as well, walking quickly up to him and giving him a kiss on the lips. While she might have more physical interest in Bonnie, she was just as romantic with Ben as she was with her.

"Everything moved?" she asked as they broke apart.

"Yeah, just have to donate the stuff left at the apartment, then I can turn in my keys," he replied, slipping a hand around her back and giving her a quick hug.

"Wonderful," she replied, running a finger over his chin. "I ran into someone on the way home," she added.

Ben glanced over her shoulder, surprised to find that Thea was standing just inside the door. She was looking a bit timid, her arms behind her back and one foot gently pawing at the ground. It wasn't the first time she had visited, and it wasn't like he disliked her... not really. It was just that things were still strained between the two of them. Maybe they would never be friends, or maybe someday the ice would thaw between them. He didn't know and wasn't doing much to find out. At least they tolerated each other when she was around. Thea and Katlyn had made amends and things seemed to be back to normal between them. He was oddly happy about that.

"Afternoon, Thea. You can come in if you like," he said.

The lioness'taur nodded and stepped inside, moving her lower body to stay close to the door while still giving it enough room to close it. "I have something for you," she said, pulling her arms from behind her back. She was holding a small black box in her hands, rubbing the edge with her fingers. She raised it up towards Ben

He blinked in surprise, glancing at Katlyn to confirm that he was seeing what he thought he was. She just nodded and smiled at him.

Ben stepped forward and took the box from Thea. "Thank you," he said, still not quite sure what to make of it. Flipping the box open, he found that it didn't do anything to answer his questions. Inside were three pairs of earrings, each one simple studs with a gem in them. One was a pair of topaz stones. The second had larger, dark-red rubies. The third had what looked like small diamonds.

It was a nice gift, but a bit odd coming from Thea. He had only had his ears pierced for a few months, and that had happened by accident. Bonnie had gotten a second piercing and that carried over when he turned back. Not that anyone really cared that a guy had earrings, so he normally wore simple silver studs.

"Thank you," he said again, a touch of confusion in his voice.

Thea smiled and gently took the box from him, turning to show him the earrings. She touched the topaz. "Ben," then the rubies, "Bonnie," and finally the diamonds. "Bon-Bon."

He looked at the earrings then back up to the lioness, who looked like she was trying not to smile. Taking the box back he ran his fingers over the gemstones, repeating what she had just said. "Ben, Bonnie, and Bon-Bon. Do... do these let me pick who I want to be?"

She nodded, the smile finally fluttering over her face. "They will override the curse. As long as you are wearing them you can be whoever you want to be. Without them you will change as you do now."

Ben closed the lid of the box and hugged it to his chest. "Thank you, Thea." he said, meaning every word. Then he leaned in and gave the lioness'taur a tight hug. It only lasted a few moments, but it was long enough for her to return it.

"It was the least I could do for what I put you through," she replied, sounding embarrassed.

He nodded as he slipped away from her. "Thank you again. This... this means a lot. Would you like to stay for a drink or something?"

The lioness'taur smiled and shook her head. "That's okay. I have some errands I need to run. You two have a good evening."

"Of course," he replied, still feeling a bit dumbfounded.

A moment later Katlyn came up and gave Thea another hug and helped her out the door. As she did, he opened the box again and looked down at the earrings. He could be Bonnie whenever he wanted to be now. He didn't have to wait for the weekend. He didn't have to wait.

"Are you okay?" Katlyn asked, putting a hand on his shoulder.

Ben nodded. "I'm just a bit stunned is all. I had never expected to just be able to choose who I was going to be."

She squeezed his shoulder and slipped her arm around his back. "You can be whoever you want to be."

A smile played over his face as he set the box down on the a table, then started to take the silver studs out of his ears, setting them carefully in the box before picking up the diamond earrings. "Then maybe it's time you finally got to meet Bon-Bon."

"I'm looking forward to it," she replied, and kissed him one more time. The first of many more to come.

-=-=-=-=-=-

This story was written and copyright 2018 by Theo Winters, reposting and archiving are allowed as long as this copyright notice and the author's name are not removed. This story cannot be published without permission of the author, violators will be insulted.