2019 Deviantart Story Request - Catveat emptor

"Here’s an idea. We have a girl who is crazy obsessed about werewolves. I mean her room is COVERED in werewolf stuff. Anyways, one day while browsing the weird corners of the internet she sees an add for a werewolf tooth for sale and instantly buys it. She then pricks herself with it hoping to turn into a werewolf only to find she’s been ripped off. It’s a wereCAT tooth and after she transforms she just laments that she’ll have to replace all her werewolf stuff with werecat stuff."

-Un-Artistic

Macy sighed with unabashed relief as she entered her bedroom. She dropped her purse on the floor, untied and kicked off her shoes and flopped unceremoniously onto her unmade bed, bouncing once before coming to rest. She lay there for a time, lips curved into a contented albeit weak smile. She shifted her body and winced as the coarse fabric of her blue Best Buy shirt rubbed against her skin. With an irritated grunt she sat up, peeled her shirt off and flung it into the dirty clothes hamper in her closet. Now nude save for her bra and pants she laid back and sank into the warm plush of the mattress, pillows and blankets. 

A short, soft chord broke the silence. Macy groaned, reached into her right pocket and pulled out a slim phone with a cracked screen. She tapped its surface, swiped it and scanned her alerts through half-lidded eyes. 

"Stupid news alert," she muttered, already shoving the phone back in her pocket. She rolled over and sat up on the edge of the bed. "Might as well...check my stuff..."

Macy rose, hobbled over to her desk and slumped in her chair. She flipped her laptop open and tapped the power button. As it booted up she brushed back her long auburn hair and gazed around her bedroom. It was, on some level, a fairly typical bedroom. It had a wooden cabinet, bedside dresser, a large IKEA-style bookshelf, a closet filled with clothes and shoes arranged on a shoe rack, and, of course, a queen-sized bed, small white desk and an office chair (i.e. where she was presently sitting). It was also, however, filled with posters, paintings, toys, models, and other decorative bric-a-brac, all of which featured werewolves or wolves. Nearly every square inch of the walls were plastered with movie posters from films such as The Howling, Wolf, Dog Soldiers, An American Werewolf in London, Ginger Snaps, Blood and Chocolate, Cursed, and Teen Wolf, art prints depicting humanoid wolves in forests and a few photographs of actual wolves. Plastic models of werewolves, werewolf action figures still in their box, smaller, hand-painted pewter werewolf miniatures and even pieces of Native American art depicting wolves - such as a small, leather-wrapped rattle with the silhouette of a howling wolf painted on its bulb - littered her desk, cabinet, bookshelf and bedside dresser. The monomania was all but absolute. 

Macy glanced down at her computer and saw the login page. She entered her password and a few seconds later her desktop appeared. It was covered with icons set against a detailed illustration of a pair of werewolves wearing Native American garb - bead necklaces, bone-breastplate armor decorated with feathers - engaged in battle. She started her web-browser and started surfing through various sites. She started by visiting a forum for werewolf enthusiasts, then a furry fandom site, several artist websites, an online retailer specializing in novelty T-shirts, a utility online billing service (albeit reluctantly), and then back to the furry fandom site, specifically, its forum.

Macy leaned back in her chair and sighed wistfully. She looked up at one of the art prints on her wall. This one depicted a female werewolf with tan-brown fur that lightened to near white across her curvaceous torso. Black decorative stripes and circles had been painted along her furry arms. She was standing in the middle of a forest clearing at night in front of a fire, paws raised as though conducting some shamanistic ritual. Spirals of dark smoke hung in the air around her, adding to her mystique. 

"So cool..." crooned Macy longingly. 

She turned back to her computer and, after a moment's hesitation, typed the words 'becoming a werewolf' into the search field in the forum and tapped enter. It returned a list of various threads. Macy clicked a few and read them. Some were merely forum members fantasizing about what becoming a werewolf would be like. Others were extended role-plays, many of which were graphic in every sense of the word. A few described hypnosis techniques that could make you think you were a werewolf and a few others described or provided links to spells that could transform individuals into werewolves or full-fledged wolves.

"Tried 'em all," said Macy, shaking her head. She glanced back at her bookshelf, noting a few, oversized volumes with pentagrams and other occult symbols inscribed upon their spine. She turned back to her computer.

Then, she came upon a thread titled 'Werebeast Teeth for Sale' in the forum marketplace. It was old - almost a year old, in fact - but still active, if not particularly well-viewed. She clicked the link and read the post.

I have come into the possession of a collection of fang necklaces. Apparently the fangs were taken from a Pawnee medicine bundle back in the late 1800s and later made into necklaces by a Native American arts and crafts shop (the owners aren't actually Native Americans) here in Las Vegas. For some reason the necklaces never made it onto the shelf. I bought the lot at discount when the store went out of business. I have a friend who's really into Wicca (or some other tradition - she was never too clear on that) take a look at them and she claimed they were taken from therianthropes - beings with the ability to shape shift into animal hybrids. They can transform you into a therianthrope if you prick yourself with them. I've never tried it myself (I like being human) but if anyone wants one I'll sell them for $50.00 plus shipping. 

The author of the post had included photos of one of the necklaces. It was rather simple - a long, slightly curved white fang wrapped in thin leather cord at its base attached to a slightly thicker leather cord with a few blue beads strung on either side. Oddly enough, its uncomplicated yet solid design lent it an air of authenticity.

Macy stared at the photo and read through the post again. A grin formed on her face.

"Fifty bucks," she said. "Not bad. And even if it doesn't work that's still a cool necklace."

She wrote a quick message asking the poster if they still had any necklaces left, crossed her fingers, and tapped send. She then continued browsing the forums.

An hour or so later she was still on the forums when noticed she'd received a message. She clicked the letter icon in the upper right hand side of the page and saw that the member she had contacted regarding the fang necklaces had responded. She sat up in her seat and read the reply. 

Yes, I still have a few left. As I said, I don't exactly know what kind of teeth they are but they work. Send me $50 for the necklace and $4 for the shipping via PayPal or Bitcoin and I'll mail you one tomorrow.  

Be absolutely certain you want this before using it. It's risky. 

The last sentence raised Macy's eyebrow. Nearly every person she'd met online who had claimed they could transform her into a werewolf had offered a similar warning - that whatever ritual, technique potion or spell they supplied her with was life-changing not to be trifled with. Some had even made her sign agreements absolving them of any legal liability. And when they inevitably failed they would either go silent or claim it hadn't worked because she 'didn't believe.' This was in all likelihood just another scam. 

...But what if it wasn't?

Macy she felt a tingle of excitement. If there was even the remotest chance this would work, she had to try. Besides, it was still a pretty cool necklace. If she were strapped for cash later on she could just resell it online and get some, all, or even a little extra money back. 

Biting her lower lip, Macy opened a new tab and accessed her PayPal account.

* * *

Macy finally found her mailbox key among the dozen or so dangling from her keychain. She carefully inserted it into the round rusty keyhole, turned and opened the box. There was something inside. Frowning, she pocketed her keys (she was carrying a bag of groceries in her other hand) and reached in. She pulled out a bundle of ads and coupons, which she promptly tossed in a nearby recycling bin. Behind them she found a small brown envelope; her address and the return address were handwritten. She stared, puzzled, at the thing and then noticed a slight bulge in one of its corners. She felt it - there was something small and hard inside.

"Oh, oh yeah!" exclaimed Macy gleefully as she recalled her purchase. "It's here!"

She clutched the envelope to her bosom, beaming. She dashed off and then hurried back to close and lock her mailbox. 

Macy ran up the staircase and scurried down the hallway. She reached her apartment and, after some fumbling with her keys, unlocked her door and stepped inside. She flicked the lights on and hastily deposited her various foodstuffs in her refrigerator and cupboards. 

"Alright," she said, practically salivating as she stared at the envelope. She tore it open and, sure enough, found a familiar-looking fang necklace inside. The fang itself was a bit smaller than she had expected but looked and felt like a real tooth. It was quite sharp as well. 

"Okay, okay, where to do this?" she murmured to herself, looking around. "Bathroom," she said firmly.

She walked into a small bathroom. There were a few pictures of wolves hanging on the walls but otherwise it was a typical bathroom with a large mirror, sink, shower and bath and toilet. Macy placed the tooth necklace down on the counter and began stripping out of her clothes. First she removed her shoes and socks followed by her BestBuy shirt. She wiggled out of her paints, pausing for a moment to stare at her slightly chubby waist and legs and sigh. She reached back and unhooked her bra. Last, she bent down and slipped out of her panties. She left everything in a pile on the tile floor.

Macy shivered slightly and hugged her sides. She looked down at the necklace, up at her naked form and, for the first time since she had started this enterprise, felt a twinge of shame. 

"Eh...what am I thinking?" she said, shaking her head. "This is nuts. This stupid thing isn't going to turn me into a werewolf. No way."

Several seconds passed. Macy just stood there, chest slowly rising and falling as she breathed. 

"Screw it," she muttered, grabbing the necklace off the counter. "Let's just...get this over with. Disappointment in three, two..."

She rolled the tiny object in her fingers for a little bit. Then, she gripped it between two fingers and pressed the tip against her thumb. She winced. A single, tiny bead of blood blossomed around the fang. She withdrew it. 

"That hurt more than I thought it would," she said, shaking her injured hand. She placed the tooth necklace back on the counter. "Okay, uh, here we go..." she said nervously.

She stared at herself in the mirror. She saw nothing unusual and felt nothing unusual. Seconds ticked by. Goosebumps were forming on her naked flesh.

"Well, crap," she said, more disappointed than she had expected. She hesitated. "Maybe...maybe it takes a while or...the full moon! Maybe it has to be a full moon out," she pondered. "Did that guy mention anything like that? Crap, I should have messaged him about..."

Macy shivered. She took a single step forward and put her hands on the counter. She looked up at her reflection. She felt dizzy and her face had gone flush. 

"Jeez, it's getting kinda hot in here..." she murmured. Her entire body was turning red - it looked as though she had just stepped out of a sauna. The dizziness was getting worse. This wasn't normal. 

Macy shook her head. "Crap, am I getting a fever? I felt fine just a few seconds ago..." Her gaze drifted down to the necklace. 

"Oh no," she whispered, horrified. "There...must have been some kind of poison or...or toxin on the fang. Gotta...gotta call 911." She bent down and started frantically digging through her discarded clothes. Suddenly, she yelped and pulled back her hands as though something had stung her. 

Macy gazed down at her shaking, perspiring fingers and watched wide-eyed as they swelled to the size of hot-dogs, turning a bright angry red in the process. They twitched. Macy screamed in pain as her nails suddenly and violently cracked, narrowed and morphed into sharp black claws that soon sunk back into her fingertips. Simultaneously, the skin along her palms thickened and darkened, forming leathery pads, one for the palm itself and one for every finger.

"Oh my god...OH MY GOD!" shrieked Macy.

The first three syllables had been spoken in horror. The last three had been a cry of joy. 

"It's real! It's happening!" squealed Macy. "It's actually happening! I'm turning into a werewolf!"

Despite the pain she leapt to her feet and stared at her reflection. Apart from her now paw-like hands she still looked like herself (albeit with a fever). "No way I'm going to miss this!" she said excitedly. "Aw crap, the transformation hur-AAGH!" she gritted her teeth as a sharp pain ran up both her arms. "...It's okay," she whispered, grinning manically. "Totally worth it. Come on, you can get through this, girl! Just...please...please let me have agouti fur! Or black!"

Networks of bulging veins embossed themselves against her inflamed skin. Her arms throbbed several times, growing with each pulse until they were as thick as her legs. Her muscles inflated like balloons, her biceps, triceps and flexors swelling with power. The change traveled down her chest and stomach. There were several loud, disconcerting cracks as her torso expanded. Her already impressive bosom grew slightly larger as her pectorals jutted forth. Her abdominals, once obscured by belly fat, emerged and tightened into a trim six-pack. Macy alternately hissed and yelped in pain as her body expanded and contorted. 

Then, fur - started sprouting everywhere on her body. At first it was a sort of faint tan but it rapidly darkened to a grayish brown with dark traverse stripes along her limbs and back and lightened to faint beige along her stomach and chest. Shorter, fuzzier fur blossomed on her face, forming several black bands across her cheeks and forehead. Her dark brown hair lengthened a few inches by otherwise did not change. 

"O-Okay," said Macy, lifting her furry arm and gazing at it. "Not exactly a-agouti but I'll t-take it!"

Suddenly she lurched forward as her feet sort of snapped. She yelped and managed to grab the edge of the counter before being flung into the mirror. She gazed down with a mixture of wonder and trepidation as her lower anatomy changed from plantigrade to digitigrade. Her toes and the balls of her feet widened and expanded while her arches stretched, her heels migrating up her legs, which were themselves swelling with muscle.

"This'll...take some g-getting used to," gasped Macy, wobbling.

A brief but sharp pain erupted on the small of her back. Macy turned her head and saw something emerging from just above her taut buttocks.

"A tail!" she squeed happily. "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!"

Sure enough a long, fleshy cord snaked its way out and started growing fur. As the appendage formed, however, Macy's ecstatic smile faded. Rather than a bushy tail she had grown a long skinny one coated with short fuzzy fur. And, although she had never had a wolf tail before, she knew she shouldn't have been able to curl it into a loop but that's exactly what she did. 

"W-Wait a minute," said Macy, growing alarmed. She looked back up at the mirror and saw that her eyes had changed. Formerly brown they had changed to greenish-brown and, more disconcertingly, her pupils had narrowed into thin dark slits. Her ears had traveled up her skull and morphed into tufted points but they looked far too short. Her nose had actually shrunk a little rather than expand into a muzzle and long, white hairs had sprouted on either side of it. She opened her mouth and saw that, although her teeth had tapered into fangs they were needlelike – long, thin, and sharp. Her tongue was triangular and rough. Macy then gazed down at her paws. She flexed them and saw curved claws emerge from sheaths.

Her mind processed all this. Then, she realized what it meant.

"I'm not a werewolf...I'm a werecat!" she screeched.

* * *

"No, no, no, this is bullshit!" growled Macy, speaking into her phone. Her tail flicked back and forth as she paced. 

"The post never specified it was a werewolf tooth," said a tired voice with a British accent on the other end. "My friend said she sensed they belonged to...." he yawned "...'moon-touched' beings or whatever but couldn't tell what kind. A few of my customers said they wound up as werewolves, some wound up werebears, others turned into air-breathing weresharks or something. It's a bit of a lucky dip."

"You should have said that in the post!"

"I know I was a little vague but uh-"

"Vague? Vague? You should have said 'I don't know what kind of werecreature these will turn you into. Use at your own risk.'"

"I did say it was risky."

"But you didn't specify what you were risking!"

"You didn't ask. Caveat emptor, madam." 

"Oh, I am going to BLAST you on the forums!"

"Go ahead. I hardly go on there any longer and I already sold most of these things. Look, you're a magical werecreature now. Do you have any idea how many people would kill for that?"

"A werecat," snarled Macy. "I wanted to be a werewolf!"

"Give it a chance. A month or too at least. If you end up despising it I'll put you in touch with my friend. Apparently there's some very horrible and painful ritual you can undergo to reverse it. Now, goodnight."

He hung up. Macy lowered her phone and issued an angry hiss. She tossed her phone on her bed and gazed around her room.

"Damnit," she fumed. "Replacing all this with wildcat stuff is going to cost a fortune!" 

Then, her gaze happened upon the fang necklace, currently on her desk. She looked at it thoughtfully. With sort of sigh she took a seat, carefully maneuvering her tail so would get crammed between the backrest and her body, and booted up her laptop. A minute or so later she logged into her forum account and, typing slow so as not to scratch her keyboard, started composing a new post.

For sale: A magical werecat fang necklace. $100.00 plus shipping. 

Macy hesitated. She hit the backspace button.

For sale: A magical werecat fang necklace. $150.00 plus shipping.