Lana’s hug was immediate and fierce. Rain was too flustered to put up even token resistance and she melted into her friend’s arms.

“I’m so happy for you, Rainy. I’m here for you, anything you need.”

Rain smiled. “Thank you, Lana. It means a lot. For the moment though, could you give me a little space? Getting hard to breathe with how hard you are hugging me and also, uh, still not used to how everything feels.”

“How everything feels? Oh… OH!” Lana scooched over towards the end of the couch and looked away while coughing into her hand. “Right, yes, it can all be a bit much if you aren’t used to it.”

“Y-y-yeah! Just not used to it! That’s it!” Rain’s face was bright red. It was one thing to get a hug from a best friend, but everything felt different now. Not just physical sensations, although there is there, but Lana had been her friend for a long time and before there was no possibility of anything other than platonic friendship. Lana was a lesbian after all. Rain was now realizing, however, that she was a girl. A girl who could, conceivably, be attractive to Lana. Who was definitely attracted to Lana. 

The focus of such attraction watched her friend from the other end of the couch with a soft sigh and a wistful look. Rain had certainly been cute before, but now? Every little thing she did was magnified. The soft, subtle crook of her mouth when she smiled, the glimmer in her eyes as she grew excited, and her kind demeanor; memories of these things swirled around in Lana’s mind. But she wasn’t about to hit on her friend not even an hour after she came out, was she?

Rain started to say something, turning towards Lana, and then realizing that her face was merely an inch or two from Lana’s. Their eyes met and they started to drift a little closer before pulling away, faces flushed and glowing.

The two absolute disasters sat there for a time, not even daring to speak. Finally, Lana cleared her throat and looked at Rain.

“So, as lovely as all of this is, we don’t really know how you are changing, right? So far everything seems to be great; I’m a little envious even of how easily you can shift stuff around, but aren’t you worried?” 

She took Rain’s hand, gently rubbing her thumb in circles. Rain smiled in gratitude. “I’m a little worried, truth be told. I have no real idea how or why I can shift things around. That isn’t the only change either; I feel much cooler all the time now, like I’m sitting in front of a fan or air conditioner. It isn’t unpleasant, but it is certainly strange. Oh no, what if I’m slowly turning into an ice cube! Or some kind of frost monster! LANA, WHAT IF I CAN’T HUG ANYMORE CAUSE I’M TOO COLD!”

Rain pulled herself into a little ball and started rocking back and forth. Lana pulled her in close again and patted her head.

“Hey, hey, it’s gonna be okay. Listen, why don’t we try to figure out how this happened and maybe that can help us figure out what is going on. Let’s retrace your steps a bit, alright?”

Rain took a deep breath. “Okay. Well, this week was fairly typical; I worked on some art for supporters, posted up that fanart too, played some games, mostly stayed inside, and I think that was it. Oh, wait! There was the MOCHI!” She sat up straight, nearly slamming her head into Lana’s chin.

Lana stared at her in bewilderment. “The… mochi?”

“Yeah, so yesterday I got a package out of nowhere. A bunch of ice cream mochi, which you know is my favorite, just dropped on my doorstep. The note inside said it was an artist appreciation gift. I had heard something about snack boxes for fan artists for the game, figured it was that. I ate the mochi shortly after you and I talked and then took a nap until just a bit before I came over here. I slept surprisingly well now that I think about it.” 

“Let me guess, the mochi was strawberry flavored?”

“Yeah, that’s right. How did you know?” 

Lana looked away to hide her fluster. “You smell like strawberries. I assumed it was some new kind of body wash or something, but given your story I feel like it might be something else?” 

Rain chuckled. “What, like I turned into mochi?”

Lana just stared at her.

“That would be absurd, there is no way that is possible. I’ve eaten mochi for years and never heard of such a thing. Why, if I was made of mochi, could I do this?”

Rain held up her arm and grabbed a bit near her wrist with her other hand and pulled. Her eyes grew wide as she was able to keep pulling, her flesh feeling soft and malleable without the slightest hint of tearing. She let go in shock and watched it snap back into place with a wiggly bounce. 

Rain held her face as she stared at the ground and muttered. “Oh my god, I’ve turned into goddamn mochi. How the fuck did this happen to me?”

Lana tilted her head, thinking. “Well, a couple things come to mind. Firstly, we can see if there is anything in the box you got that talks about this. Secondly, let’s tally up all the stuff that has changed and see maybe what all you can do. Thirdly, it’s gonna be okay, Rain. I’m here and you have so many friends you can count on. It will be fine, just take things a step at a time.” 

Rain breathed a sigh of relief. Of course Lana had a plan, she was the smart and calm one. “You’re right. Ok, well, I left the box on the counter back at my place, we can pop back over and see? Shit, I’m not sure I wanna be seen dressed like this, at least not right now. Do you have anything else I could wear? A-anything at all would be okay!” Rain laughed nervously at the last part. 

Lana’s response was a feral smirk that made Rain even more nervous.

“Raaaaainy~ my dear, I have so many things you can wear. How do you feel about skirts?”

“Lana, I can’t wear skirts, those are for girls and oh my god I keep forgetting I’m girl. I CAN WEAR SKIRTS NOW!”

The girls burst out in a fit of giggling before diving into the closet to find something to wear. Lana held up a long, flowy black skirt and wiggled her eyebrows. Rain blushed and nearly shook her head before straightening and nodding her head.

A quick dip in the bathroom to change and out came a cute girl with pale red eyes, short pink hair, and a sheepish smile over how she looked in the skirt and a matching black tank top with a mesh shirt over it. She stood with her hands clasped and waited for Lana’s response. 

“I can’t believe such a cutie was living right down the hall from me this whole time! C’mon girl, do the twirl, SKIRT GO SPINNY!” 

Rain obliged with a spin and started giggling over how wonderful the skirt felt flowing through the air as she turned. She spun again and again until she got dizzy and collapsed into Lana’s arms, still giggling. 

“Thank you, Lana. It means a lot, truly. Would you believe me if I told you that I might have dreamt of this, at least once or twice?” She smiled up at the other girl.

Lana laughed and poked her nose. “Rainy, I don’t know how subtle you thought you were being, but I had a sneaking suspicion about you for years. I just--” She paused. “--I didn’t want to pressure you. It can be so hard to tell and you never know how someone will react to the idea being brought up. It’s safer sometimes to just be there if they need you, but keeping quiet. Though I suppose I could have dropped a few more hints.”

Rain was nodding along until the last part and frowned. “A few more hints? You mean you dropped hints already?”

“Oh, yeah, quite a few of them. Hell, I honestly thought you would piece it together after we did the magical girl thing in college. That night was the happiest I had ever seen you and I thought you had figured it out, but the next day you kept avoiding me and pretending like it never happened.”

Rain blushed and groaned, burying her face in her hands. “Oh my god, that’s right. I really did enjoy that, I just woke up the next morning and freaked out and thought you might hate me if I told you how much I liked it. I don’t know why, I just got so anxious.” 

Lana nodded. “Well, don’t worry about it, little drizzle. What matters is you got there eventually and now we have all the time in the world to enjoy being girls.”

“Yeah, you’re right. Wait, little drizzle??? That’s a new one.” Rain buried her face even further into her hands, speaking in a muffled tone. “I kind of like it though, it’s cute.” She noticed that Lana had an arm around her and they were sitting very close to each other on the couch now. “Errm, wasn’t there something we were supposed to be doing?” She stood up carefully and looked back at Lana. 

Lana looked back blankly before her eyes widened and she shot up. “RIGHT, YOUR APARTMENT FOR THE BOX!” She dashed about and grabbed her purse and some shoes. 

The two of them made their way over to Rain’s apartment and found the box on the counter exactly as she had left it. Rain grabbed the card and handed it to Lana, letting her read through it as she searched the box for anything else.

“Hmm, I’ve never heard of this ‘MeepMeep Mochi’ company. You say this just showed up at your door, out of nowhere?”

Rain nodded. “Yeah, like I said I figured it was some kind of promotional thing or maybe an art contest I entered and forgot about. I don’t see anything else in this box yet, but I’ll keep looking.”

Lana started pacing back and forth. “There has to be something, some kind of clue.” Her shoe brushed up against the fallen note and she picked it up. “Hang on, what’s this?”

She read it quickly. “Rainy, did you see this? Some kind of warning label. Says to not eat the mochi too quickly, something about side effects. There is a number on the back.” 

Rain read the note over Lana’s shoulder and frowned. “Must have fallen out when I was unpacking everything. I was a little excited.”

“Maybe they can explain what is going on. I’ve never heard of this company, maybe they are one of those bespoke snack services.” Lana carefully entered the number and set her phone to speaker.

After a few rings, an automated voice rang out. “Thank you for calling MeepMeep Mochi, where every snack is guaranteed to delight. Please press one for customer support or two for other options.”

Lana pressed one and they waited through some banal hold music.

Finally, someone picked up. “Thank you for calling MeepMeep, this is Rin. Can I get the ID number of your order or your account name?”

Lana looked at Rain and mouthed “ID number?” Rain quickly poked through the box and found a number on the card.

She read it off dutifully. “Yes, hello, my name is Rain--” a quick shudder of joy ran through her, “and the order ID is eight zero zero eight five six nine.”

“Alright Ms. Rain, give me just a moment to pull up the details of your order. Let’s see here… OH! You’re Eliza’s friend!”

Rain and Lana looked at each other blankly before Rain responded. “I’m not sure I know an Eliza. I just received this package of mochi claiming to be from some art appreciation program and I’m having some interesting troubles with the product.”

There was a pause before Rin responded in a chastened tone. “Ah, what I meant to say is clearly you have admirers of your work. Ahem. So, let me guess: you ate the mochi in one sitting.”

“How did you know?”

“Well, we are a rather bespoke and exclusive snacks company who deals in transformative treats. Our products are divided into two categories: snacks for eating and snacks for becoming. The order you received is one of the latter. Typically, our customers are fully informed as to the effects of our snacks before receiving their order. In your case, this was a gift and it was assumed that the giver would fill you in. I take it that didn’t happen?”

“You could say that. One minute I’m enjoying some tasty mochi, the next I’ve napped a whole day away and I wake up feeling strange. And that is just the beginning. What exactly is this stuff?”

There was another pause before Rin responded. “Metamorphic mochi created by a person made of the same material. Which, if you ate the entire box, is what you are also now composed of. A slimeperson made of mochi, if you will.”

Rain gulped and gave Lana a worried look. Lana looked equally confused. “You mean the slimefolk people have been whispering about on the net? Those are just cryptid stories, right?” 

“Not at all, ma’am. Per the Post-Human Act of 20XX, slimefolk are a fully recognized subset of post-humans, humans transformed into new forms outside the bounds of traditional humanity. The Act also provides for discretion and most post-humans tend to keep a low profile. Our company is one of several small operations that allow post-humans to support themselves with their unique talents in a safe and healthy manner. We are of course very concerned that Ms. Eliza sent you metamorphic mochi without telling you of its effects. She was very enthusiastic, I helped her place her order even, and she was sure you would love it. Even picked out your favorite, strawberry ice cream.”

Rain stared at the phone. “How… I’ve never posted that anywhere, only someone who knows me should know that. It’s not exactly a secret, but not something I would expect just anyone to know.” She shook her head. “That isn’t important right now, though. What is important is I need to know what ‘being a slimefolk’ entails because so far I’m on the verge of freaking out over these changes.” 

“Not to worry, Miss. You’ll have to be a bit more careful on sunny or hot days since your core is a bit more sensitive to heat, but otherwise there are very few drawbacks. Slimefolk anatomy is not fully understood as of yet, however every one that I know lives a fulfilling and wonderful life. That being said, should you wish to change back to how you were before, MeepMeepMochi is willing and able to reverse these changes at no cost to you. The window to do so is several months, so you can take your time to decide. I do apologize that this was all thrust upon you without any warning, but we are here for anything you may need in this tumultuous time.” Rin’s voice was steady and measured, which did much for calming Rain down.

“How I was before… you mean exactly as I was before?”

“That’s right.”

“And… what if I don’t want that?” Lana shot Rain a quick look of concern.

“As I said, you’ve got time to decide. I will send over some literature that talks about the details of your new form to help you figure things out. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or concerns. Will that be all for today, Miss Rain?”

“Yes, thank you so much. I feel much calmer now.”

“Excellent, thank you for choosing MeepMeepMochi and have a great day.”

The call ended with a soft beep and the two women sat there, staring at it. 

Lana broke the silence first. “You don’t want to turn back, do you?”

Rain shook her head. “I’m a little scared about no longer being human, at least not in the typical sense. However, it is hard to feel too bad about that when it’s given me a body I feel good in and helped me figure out some things that have been on my mind for years.” She walked over to her desk and curled up into the chair. “I’m still not sure who this ‘Eliza’ person is, I feel like that name should ring a bell, but I’m blanking. Part of me wants to thank her, to hug her, and gush about how happy I am. But another piece of me is furious that someone would do this to me without asking. That part is smaller, though. It is hard to be mad when I feel so light and happy.”

“I know the feeling, truly. And I can relate regarding Eliza, that name sounds incredibly familiar. Maybe someone from the game community? The card said something about an artist appreciation program, maybe they were nervous about sending you something like this?” Lana paced back and forth, biting her lip. 

Her musing was interrupted by a sound from Rain’s desktop. They both looked at the new email that had just arrived from MeepMeepMochi. A simple message from Rin stating that the helpful guides she promised were attached and that any questions could be sent to the same email.

The attached files were simply titled: So You’re A Slimefolk Now: Slime 101 and Metamorphic Mochi: How It’s Made

Rain wasn’t sure which to open first, but was startled by Lana grabbing the mouse in a daze and opening up the second file immediately.

Metamorphic Mochi is a tasty treat that is created by mochi slimefolk as a natural byproduct, similar to milk. Care must be taken when preparing the mochi for sharing as the mochi retains transformative properties unless specially treated for non post-human consumption. Standard mochi folk will find that they can safely remove pieces of themself to turn into edible mochi through refrigeration or drying. Ice cream mochi folk, a very common subset, will find that their equivalent of breastmilk can be frozen and will stabilize into snacks after a few hours. UV light is then used to neutralize the transformative properties of the mochi, making it safe for humans to eat without any side effects. 

Ice cream mochi folk should be advised that it is very common to experience lactation during arousal and any human partners should be wary as the milk is concentrated and will cause transformation if consumed--

Lana blushed as she finished reading the last part aloud, looking away from Rain who was also quite flustered. 

“Uh, maybe I’ll leave the rest for you to read, later.” 

Rain looked intently at a spot on the wall as she replied. “Yes, I’ll be sure to read through this all. Very important stuff.” A loud knock on the door interrupted her musing.

She looked at the clock and jumped up with a start. “Oh jeez, I had no idea how late it’s getting! That’ll be Tammy, I told her to meet at my place so we can go to the party together.” She opened the door as Lana tried to stop her. 

“Rain! She doesn’t know--”

Lana trailed off as the door opened and a dark-skinned woman with long blonde hair in white armor and a blue skirt smiled at them. 

“Heya, Mike! Hope you are ready for the party! Wow, Lana said she went all out on your costume, but words do NOT do it justice! You look amazing!” Tammy stepped in and gave Rain a big hug.

“Hi, Tammy… it’s good to see you. About the costume--” Rain pulled back as Tammy continued.

“You look super cute. Although, I thought Lana said she didn’t go for any breast forms this time… and the ones you’ve got on look really good, that has to be top quality.” She gently poked Rain in the chest only for the other girl to yelp and pull back. 

Tammy froze in shock and looked up and down, taking in Rain’s look fully and processing.

Rain sheepishly smiled back. “So, Tammy, I’m going by Rain now… isn’t that neat?” She fidgeted with her cloak, waiting for a response, any response. 

A minute passed as Tammy continued to process before she finally shook her head and smiled back. “Rain, I’m so damn happy for you! Also, Lana? You owe me lunch. I knew Rain was going to be the last to crack, always was such a nervous gal. You look good! Although, unless you’ve been hiding that you’ve been on titty skittles for awhile, I’m going to hazard a guess and say you didn’t look like that earlier this week.” 

Rain blushed deeply and stared at the ground. Lana groaned and nodded back. 

“You won’t believe what happened, Tammy. She got some mysterious package and before you know it, our little Rainy has given herself a magical girl transformation--”

Tammy interrupted with a smug grin. “I know all about the mochi and let me tell you, I’m going to have some words with Eliza.” Turning towards Rain, she continued. “Let me guess, she didn’t include a warning in the package about the effects or any kind of indication as to what would happen? Typical Lizzy.” 

Rain nodded along before tilting her head at the last bit. “Wait a second, you know this ‘Eliza’ person?”

“Oh yes, you could definitely say that. You’ll see once we reach the party, I don’t want to spoil the surprise.” Tammy wrapped her arm around Rain’s shoulder as they set out for the party.

Vyria_Durav

Chapter 3 has the plot thickening further. Who is Eliza? Can you guess? :3 You can read this and more content also on my Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vyriadurav?fan_landing=true if you wish to support me further. Catnip will be returning after I finish this story, though I might sneak a chapter in here or there.