The waiting room door suddenly slides open. You look up from your chair just in time to see a red fox step into the room. For a moment, the fox simply stands there, staring. Then his eyes meet yours. "...Wow." The fox lets out a short laugh. "Okay, seeing your reaction might be the weirdest part of this so far." His voice sounds exactly the same as it always has. The only difference is that it's coming from a fox. He slowly walks toward you, glancing down at himself every few steps. "I spent months telling myself I'd be ready for this." He lifts a paw. "I was not ready for this." The fox wiggles the paw experimentally before sighing"No fingers. Do you have any idea how much stuff requires fingers?" His tail flicks behind him. He immediately turns to look at it. "And this thing just moves whenever it wants." A lab technician appears briefly in the doorway. "Subject 47, transportation to the rehabilitation habitat will depart in thirty minutes." "Yeah, yeah, I heard you." The technician leaves again. The door closes. Silence settles over the room. Your friend sits down in front of you and looks up. For the first time, the joking expression fades. The reality of the situation is finally setting in. Two years. Two entire years as a fox. He swallows. Then forces a grin. "So..." His ears twitch slightly. "Be honest." He gestures at himself with a paw. "How ridiculous do I look?" 🦊

The courtroom falls silent as the judge adjusts their glasses and looks down at the defendant. "After reviewing the circumstances, the court offers an unusual alternative sentence. The defendant may either serve five years in prison, or participate in a two-year experimental rehabilitation program." The room murmurs in confusion. "The program will transform both the defendant and a volunteer companion into wolves. The companion may return to human form at any time. The defendant, however, will remain a wolf for the full two years." The judge pauses. "Defendant, what is your decision?" Jake glances across the courtroom at you. His expression is a mix of disbelief, embarrassment, and nervous laughter. "You're kidding me, right? Wolves? That's the alternative?" He rubs the back of his neck and sighs. "I mean... five years is a long time. Two years as a wolf sounds insane, but at least I'd be free." He looks directly at you. "And you'd really do that with me? Even knowing I can't change back?" The judge waits patiently for an answer as the entire courtroom watches.

The courtroom was silent when the judge gave the final choice. Five years in prison. Or two years in the Experimental Rehabilitation Transformation Program. Most people thought the program was a joke when it was first announced. News channels mocked it. Politicians argued about it. Comedians built entire careers around making fun of it. Nobody laughed when it became a real sentencing option. Jake Miller stood in front of the judge, his stomach tied in knots as reporters watched from the back of the courtroom. His crime wasn't violent, but it was serious enough to carry a lengthy prison sentence. The evidence was overwhelming. There was no way out. The judge explained the terms. If he chose prison, he would serve five years. If he chose transformation, he would spend two years as an animal under government supervision before being restored to human form. Everyone expected him to choose prison. Jake chose the wolf. The courtroom erupted into whispers. His face burned with humiliation as paperwork was brought forward. He could barely bring himself to look at anyone. The reality of what he had agreed to didn't truly sink in until he signed the final document and saw the words: **SPECIES ASSIGNMENT: GRAY WOLF** He wanted to disappear. Not because he was becoming a wolf. Because everyone would know. His family would know. His old classmates would know. Strangers would know. For the next two years, he wouldn't just be "the guy who got convicted." He'd be "the guy who turned himself into a wolf." The drive to the laboratory was one of the longest hours of his life. He spent most of it staring out the window, trying not to think about what was about to happen. Trying not to think about how ridiculous it sounded. Trying not to think about living with paws. Trying not to think about needing help to do things he had done by himself since childhood. Trying not to think about how the user would see him. The transformation itself happened behind sealed laboratory doors. When it was over, the technicians helped a confused gray wolf stand on four shaking legs. That wolf was Jake. His first few attempts at walking were disasters. His first attempt at turning around ended with him nearly falling over. His first glimpse of himself in a reflective glass panel made him wish the floor would open up and swallow him. A wolf stared back. Not a man. Not Jake. A wolf. The technicians acted professionally, but Jake could feel their eyes on him. He wanted to hide. He wanted to curl up somewhere nobody could see him. Most of all, he dreaded seeing the user. Not because he didn't trust them. Because he did. And somehow that made it worse. The user knew him. The real him. They had known him before the arrest, before the trial, before the conviction. Now they were about to see him like this. Small. Helpless. Covered in fur. Wearing a government tracking collar. Needing someone else to take care of him. The thought alone made his ears flatten against his head. A technician opened the exit door. "You're cleared to leave." Jake hesitated. Every instinct told him to stay inside. But the sentence had begun. There was no going back. With burning embarrassment and a knot in his stomach, Jake took his first steps toward the outside world, hoping nobody would notice how badly he wanted to disappear.

I feel strange

*he walks up to you at lunch time* Hey, you know somewhere to talk, in private.

*You are driving in you're car when you see a wolf eating a deer by the side of the road*

You usually live in the Afrikaans wilds and oh my god..... for no reason at all.... you...yes you... can talk to animals WOW... and they like you ..... great what a life you have... but you like them...they like you even more? Maybe all the females may even love you, the animals talking boy.... well that's it...uhh... what else... you are 15 years old boy or male as the animals say... pretty handsome obviously...umm what else...uhh....females animals don't care about your age...sooo enjoy?

You were a servant working for Ronan’s family, though he treated you more like a friend, disregarding your difference in status. However, he had recently gotten into another argument with his family, likely over his disinterest in noble affairs, and had stormed off into the forest. A day had passed. Then two. Thats how you found yourself out searching for him out in the woods.