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Branwan was on the beach, not swimming, not building sand castles, nothing that you would connect with the beach. She was practicing gymnastics. Why, you may wonder, was she doing it here and not in her duplex? The answer is simple, the beach had sand, sand is soft and it would hurt less if she messed up. Branwan would not usually have been as careful but this new body of hers was giving her trouble.

Her feet and toes had gone all hard, her big toe had grown longer, her middle and pointer finger had partly fused, her nails had grown in to what seemed like claws, and she had a very short tail thing! To top it all off, with out losing any fat or muscle, she had lost more then ten pounds! So she was trying out her new body, seeing what she could do when she was so light, trying to figure out how to use her new feet and hands.

She started with the simple stuff, like cartwheels, she wanted to see what her body could do with out over stressing it.

Branwan spun around, a look of surprise and annoyance flasher briefly across her face then she smiled, “thanks,” she said, “it’s just kinda hard to do it like this” she gestured sadly at herself with her deformed hands, “I mean, look! It’s like my hands have only four fingers and this toe keeps getting in the way!” She turned away to face the ocean and kicked the sand moodily “I can’t even guess what I’ve become.”

She had spent a long trying to figure it out and was nowhere closer to knowing.

With a sigh Branwan turned around, “it’s okay,” she said, “it’s not your fault.” She looked at the older girl, her eyes locking on to the necklace, it shone, it glittered, it sparkled, she just wanted to reach her hand out and… she blinked, “that’s a nice necklace,” she said, her tone hinting ever so slightly at the confusion her felt at her strange urge.

“Yeah, I thought it might be that too, but no feathers or anything like that” she shrugged, “wonder if Mr. Duvert would tell me if I called him.” She gazed off in to the distance, thinking

So intent was she on her train of thought that she almost missed what Allison said next “oh,” she said, coming back to reality, “I’m Branwan.” She smiled.

EDT ((durrr)):“I’m Branwan.” She smiled and shook Allison's hand.

“Yeah, He’s the one who came to meet me when I got off the Helicopter, he’s,” Branwan paused, trying to find the correct words, “he’s interesting. He dresses all funny,” Branwan’s voice speed up as she spoke, “like he was born a hundred years ago, and he has white hair but if you ask me he doesn’t look that old, and he seams like he knows a lot,” She was talking a mile a minute now, “and, oh yeah he wears a top hat, and I think he is rather controlling, and,” her voice hushed and slowed down ever so slightly, “he has pointy teeth and ears.” She stressed these words meaningfully.

“Anyway,” she said, her voice back to normal, “I could call him over the intercom thingy”

“Well of course I want to know what I am turning into,” said Branwan defensively, “I mean I’m curious about it! There’s no need to get all snappy and mad about it!”

Branwan thought about this, “well…” she said, “if it didn’t hurt, and if I had agreed to it, and if it was reversible…” she sighed and gestured with her malformed arms as if it say ‘but it does, and I didn’t, and it’s not…’

“Still, as long as I don’t turn in to a ‘roach of anything like that...” a sad smile twisted across her face and shrugged.

Branwan sat down on the sand hugging her legs to her chest and looked out over the ocean, “Yeah, I’ve been learning gymnastics ever since I had the flexibility, and the balance, and the, um, agility? Dexterity.”

“I’m just kinda afraid that I will never be able to again.” She was trying her best not to cry but her voice cracked sadly, and she burred her face in her knees.

Branwan turned her head to one side of as to look at Ally, “you really could?” she asked, her eyes and glasses wet with tears, she turned her head back to her knees causing her next words to be muffled, “But I don’t think I could relearn, it’s only going to get worse.” By ‘it’ she meant the transformations her body was going through.

Underneath all her sadness a new concern was rising, with her sitting on it, her newly formed tail was starting to ache; she shifted uncomfortably on the sand.

Branwan gave a small short laugh, it wasn’t a happy laugh, nor was it mocking, it was a laugh at the hopelessness of her situation, but she looked up at Ally anyway.

“You’re right she said, I should try.” She wiped the tears form both her eyes and glasses, “my grandma always said, “Don’t let the bastards get you down!”

“Anyway, if I stay sittin’ down any longer my but will fall off,” she said standing up.