Ting-ding!

 

The old oak door to Miss Kazzam’s humble curio quickly swung open and closed as a young man walked in.

 

    “Welcome in!” Circe greeted the potential customer with a practiced sing-song. “Looking to buy, or are you just getting out of the rain?”

 

    The man paused, adjusting his coat. “I’m, uh. Looking to buy. Where’s, uh, where’s the register so I can check out?” He had a telltale nervousness to his tone that Circe immediately recognized. A smug grin curled across her face.

 

    “Ah, the cash register? It’s back here, under the counter. Cash only, I’m afraid. You’ll have to come closer to make your purchase.” She beckoned him deeper into the shop. “What exactly did you have in mind?”

 

    The man cautiously approached the counter and Circe stifled a grin. Come closer, little kitty. We both know what you’re really here for.

 

    “Y-you said it’s cash only? I’m here to make, um, a withdrawal actually.” As he said this, he slowly drew a mean looking knife from the pocket of his coat. “I need you to hand over all the money you have in the register. N-now!”

 

    Circe snickered. “You’re adorable. Now put that down before you hurt yourself, darling.” She snapped her fingers and the knife suddenly flew from the attacker’s hand, clattering harmlessly on the hardwood floor. “I’m actually quite glad you decided to visit me today. I just moved in, and I’ve been looking for a… helper. Why don’tcha show me your face, hun?”

 

    The shopkeeper waved her hand and the would-be robber’s hood flew backwards off of his head, revealing his astonished face. His messy, black hair clearly hadn’t been cut in well over a month, and it didn’t look intentional. Dark circles surrounded his deep-green eyes, which were currently furrowed into an expression somewhere between shock, anger and horror.

 

    “W-what the hell are you, lady?” The thief managed to utter. “Look, I don’t want any trouble. I can just leave, I’ll never bother you again, honest!”

 

    “Relax, darling. From the bottom of my heart, I’m not going to hurt you. I just need a new familiar, and you look perfect for the job. This next part might feel a little strange, but don’t panic.” Circe snapped her fingers.

 

    With a sudden jolt of energy, the thief’s body began to shrink. Looking down at himself in disbelief, he could see his baggy jacket outgrowing him before his eyes. Perhaps more concerning, he felt two new lumps growing on his chest. Panicking, he turned to an antique mirror that was leaning against a nearby wall, he found himself staring face to face with a completely different person.

 

    He was nearly a full foot shorter, standing at barely even five feet tall if that. His unkempt hair now reached the nape of his neck, and peeking out from the top of his adorable little head were a pair of catlike ears. He tried wiggling them, and to his surprise, they swiveled back and forth at his command. Moving down to his face, he was greeted with soft new features befitting a young woman about his age. With thin eyebrows, bright green eyes and a button nose, his new face was… beautiful. He smiled, and the girl in the mirror smiled back. He blushed and forced himself to look away.

 

    “What did you- why- I’m--” The thief struggled to find the right words for what had happened to him. “I’m a girl?”

 

    “Not if you don’t want to be,” Circe corrected him from behind a sly grin. “The new gender is optional, unlike your new job. I just had a hunch about you and decided to run with it. You’re to become my new familiar, little kitty.”

 

    The catgirl considered his options. Familiar? He had heard that word before, but always used to describe animals. They were pets of witches weren’t they? “So I’m your… pet?”

 

    Circe chuckled at that, and he realized he must have said something embarrassing. “I wouldn’t quite put it that way,” She began. “You’ll just be my cute little helper. A familiar is an animal spirit whose emotional bond with their witch works sort of like a magical battery. The closer we are emotionally, the more you’ll power my magic. And I bet it’ll be a piece of cake bonding with a cute little thing like you.”

 

    The little thief blushed. He couldn’t remember the last time he had been called “cute,” and he certainly wasn’t used to being this much… smaller than any person who was complimenting him. “But if you, um, only needed to make me a cat, then why did you, uh. You know. Why did you make me a girl?”

 

“I read your aura and got a feeling that you already were a girl, whether you knew it or not.” She smirked. “Are you telling me you would rather be a catboy?”

 

    Their face reflexively soured when she suggested that. Why did they suddenly hate the idea of being a boy again? They had gone their whole life up until now having no problems about their gender whatsoever. They only had occasional thoughts about what it would be like to be a girl, once every couple weeks at most. Well, maybe they had them more often than that, but that wasn’t the same as… what this woman was suggesting.

 

    Was it?

 

    When Circe’s face suddenly turned to one of motherly concern, the catgirl realized that her own face was wet with hot tears.

 

    “Oh goddess, I’m so sorry, sweetie,” the witch consoled the poor girl as she pulled her into a hug. “You poor thing, I should have never teased you like that. Should have known this would be a lot for you to take in.”

 

    The catgirl gently backed out of the embrace to dry her tears with her now comically oversized jacket. “I’m, uh, sorry for, um, you know. With the knife. And then, uh, crying all over you. Ma’am. And for, um. U-um-” She quickly lost what little composure she had left and once again burst into tears. She retreated back into the safety of Circe’s arms to wait out the downpour. Wrapped up in her own soft, warm jacket, Circe stroking her hair, she felt more secure than she had ever felt in her life. Circe stifled an adoring squeal as the catgirl began to purr.

 

    When several otherwise silent minutes had passed and the purring hadn’t stopped, Circe cautiously removed the brand new girl from her lap and placed her on the floor, where she continued purring.

 

    “You don’t need to apologize for a thing, darling.” The witch said, brushing cat hair off of her shawl. “Least of all for crying. It’s me who should be apologizing for messing with you like that in your moment of self discovery. I know that nobody would resort to armed robbery if they didn’t have to, let alone a little angel like you. You know, you can stay with me if you want. Being a familiar really isn’t hard, I promise. And you’d be housed, fed and taken care of.”

 

    The catgirl dried her face on her sleeve and managed to speak up. “Are you sure? I… I would like that very much, please. And um. If you wouldn’t mind, could you maybe, um, scratch behind m-my, um. My ears some more?”

 

    Circe giggled as she complied with the catgirl’s request, eliciting some very loud purring. “You’re just too adorable, pumpkin. What should I call you? I’m sure whatever name you went by before would hardly suit you now.”

 

    “Well, I liked when you called me Kitty earlier. Do you think that, um, maybe you could keep calling me that?”

 

    “Of course I can, Kitty,” Circe replied, pulling her closer into a warm hug. “I’m so sorry things started off so rocky between us. I guarantee you’ll love our time together as my familiar. I can even set up a nice little alcove for you in my place back here.” She indicated to a bead curtain behind the store counter.

 

    Kitty picked herself up off the floor and walked deeper into the shop. Pulling aside the clattering beads, she stepped into her beautiful new life.