(I need to turn into something fast!)

Hugh’s mind turned the mental pages of his memory as he ran, but it was taking too long. He remembered the diagram of a bird yes, but to shift the bones, muscles and cells of his body to fit that image was one he had not practised. It seemed Miss Athy’s words were prophecy.

Yet still he didn’t give up. His legs continued to run, even lengthened a little so that his strides became bigger. As the barrels approached the old man Hugh shouted a warning, but it seemed his feet were frozen in shock.

The front-most barrel was about to hit the old man -

- or so everyone thought, until a hooded figure dropped down in front of the him. They threw down what looked like a piece of paper, and then the barrel seemed to hit a stone; it bounced into the air and landed in a crash right behind them. Hugh didn’t slow down though; there was still another barrel rolling down the hill.

Registering that he had more time and that the figure would protect the old man, Hugh knew that he only needed to stop the barrel somehow. His long legs made him a little faster than the second barrel, so - (I only need strength!)

The first thought in his mind was the gorilla exhibit he just inspected. Yes, that would do!

He shifted his muscles and bone, the sensation utterly uncomfortable, and in short order he turned into a gorilla.

With a roar, he jumped in front of the barrel and used his now-strong body to catch it. Certainly it dug into his skin, but he managed to grab it into a stop.

The sensation of everyone breathing a sigh of relief was palpable.

Now that the danger was gone, Hugh became conscious of the stares he was getting. No surprise there, he just did a transformation in public. Or perhaps the sight of a gorilla in a long skirt was amusing? He mentally groaned at the fact that he needed to get another uniform to replace the one he just tore out of.At any rate, he managed to slowly push the barrel back up the hill.

The Swiftfoot though was not in a thankful mood. Strangely, he was now raging at the hooded figure (how had they got up here so fast?). As he put the barrel down, making sure it won’t roll down the hill again, snippets of the argument found their way into his ears.

“How are you going to compensate me for the destroyed barrel? That’s 30 gallons of beer you have to pay back.”

The Reptillian looked utterly disgusted at the Swiftfoot’s behaviour. “Sshe just ssaved the life of an elderly from your misstake. You’re not even thanking her for that?”

“Hey shut up scaly, I’m running a business here.”

The Reptillian hissed angrily at the slight. It seemed if someone didn’t do anything, the atmosphere would get heated up again.

“Um-hi. Hi everyone. Sorry to disturb.” The three of them turned their sights on Hugh, who was still a gorilla. As to why he could still speak, his vocal cords hadn’t transformed. That spoke more to his inexperience than anything.

At any rate, that played to his advantage. “I overheard your conversation and would like to address you concerns sir.” He had eye contact with the Swiftfoot, making sure he knew that he was the one being addressed. “As a wise businessman, I’m sure you have already insured your goods. This is clearly an accident and I’m sure your insurance company will be willing to cover it, especially if you make a report at the Worker’s Union.”

The Swiftfoot stroked his beard, nodding at every little praise to him. “Hmph, you’re right, they are insured. Very well, I’ll file a report at the Worker’s Union. Better get it done and settle it quickly so I can have my money back. Hey weirdo,” this he addressed Hugh. “Drop the barrel at the back of the truck and help me tie it down.”

Doing just that, the Swiftfoot left without any apologies.

The Reptillian, who watched the man go, hissed and spat on the carton he was standing on. “A pox on that man. Honesstly!”

“Um sir,” Hugh addressed the Reptillian this time. “I’m sorry that you had to go through that. Especially when he called you… well, that slur. It was good of you to hold back your anger.”

“Hmph, at leasst he left. I don’t want to deal with that man anymore.” He waved Hugh off and went back into his restaurant.

That left a still-a-gorilla Hugh and the hooded figure.

“Can you change back?” the concern in her voice surprised Hugh, who stuttered out, “Well I can, but I ripped up the top of my uniform when I transformed so…”

She nodded. “Take your things and come with me.”

Grabbing his bag and the remains of his clothes, Hugh followed behind the figure. He soon realised that they were headed to a tailor shop down the hill.

Imagine his surprise when the door opened and the old man that was saved was behind the counter.

“Oh hello there! Thank you so much, both of you,” the man - the tailor - energetically shook their hands. “Is there anything I can do for you in return?”

“He needs a change of clothes,” she said.

“I’m normally a human, but as a gorilla I’m top-bigger than my human self, so I kinda ripped up my uniform,” Hugh explained.

The tailor nodded. “I see, you’re the shapeshifter aren’t you? Summoned from another world or something?” He didn’t seem too concerned about the answer as he grabbed his measuring tape and a pencil. “Well I’m very used to doing the uniforms of Janiga Academy students. Why don’t you change back to your human self while I get ready?”

The tailor made his way to the back of the shop, leaving the two of them alone.

It was a very awkward atmosphere, so Hugh decided to rummage through his bag for a picture. Drawing it out, it was a picture of himself standing straight up next to a statue.

“That is… you?”

He jumped at the sudden question. Waving away her apology of looking over his shoulder, Hugh answered, “Yes. I sometimes have problems going back to my usual self, so this picture gives me an idea about how I look, how tall I am, things like that.”

She nodded. “I see, that is a good tactic.”

He felt himself blush a little at the praise.

After that he took to the changing room, explaining that he felt shy at the idea of changing in front of another person. Now that the adrenaline has worn off, he was very aware of the hunger in his belly. Luckily he still had enough energy to turn back to himself, even if he was more hairy than usual.

The moment he came out though, a loud sound came from his stomach. It was audible enough to draw the figure and the tailor’s attention. The latter gave a laugh. “Well let’s quickly do the measurements and then you can go out and enjoy some food while I make the uniform. Should just take an evening, so come back here once the sun sets.”

Waving away Hugh’s money - “It’s free of charge!” - the tailor handed him a shirt and coat to borrow. It was a little too big for Hugh, but it would do.

Hugh stepped out of the shop and was surprised to see the figure was still with him.

“I’m sorry if this sounds a bit rude, but you’re still here? You don’t have to accompany me you know.”

The figure seemed to startle, so Hugh quickly added “Not that I mind, it’s just… every thing’s over now, right? So you can kind of… go?”

She chuckled. “Forgive me for prying, but I am a little interested in you. Do you mind if we walk together for awhile?”

Hugh shrugged, giving her a smile. (Probably interested in my Shapeshifting powers) he thought.

But to his surprise, she asked something else.