User:Jetfire/School Daze Day 1

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Works by Jetfire on Shifti

School Daze Day 1

Author: Jetfire
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This story contains adult content.

Author's note This story is basically R rated, but future chapters may have adult scenes for sexuality between adults. Reader descretion is advised


Friday September 22

Leo Mayes High School, Medicine Hat, Alberta

A school bus idled in the public parking lot of Leo Mayes High School. Around it, a bunch of students milled about, talking to friends or parents, or checking their bags as they were loaded in a van. It was organized chaos as the annual senior camping trip got ready to set off.


Nicole Karnes watched the chaos from her own pickup truck, loaded down with the extra supplies they would need for the weekend. She'd long given up trying to keep track of her students, and left the job to her husband, Andrew, who was trying to herd them towards the bus doors.


"Having second thoughts?" she asked Emily, one of the parents of the students, as well as one of the trip's chaperones.


"A few, but I said I would do it. Tim's been waiting for this since last year," the mother said. "Thanks for letting me ride in the truck with you."


"No problem. I hate riding in the school buses, so any excuse to not ride a bus is good for me."


"Excuse me... excuse me... Attention Please!" Andrew's voice cut through the chatter, echoing around the parking lot a little. "Everyone going to Spruce Coulee Camp, please line up at the bus here. Make sure your gear is IN the van or it will be left behind. Everyone else, please step back."


It still took a few minutes for the crowd to separate but soon he was standing between the campers and the parents and friends who had shown up to say goodbye (some of which should have been in class, but the teachers were turning a blind eye to that).


"Welcome everyone to the annual senior camp. We'll be going to the Spruce Coulee Camp, just east of Elkwater. While the camp does have some basic amenities, it does not have cell service, so don't expect to use your phones much. The camp does have a landline. If you need to reach us, contact Principal Clendenning and he will reach out to us." Andrew nodded to the principal who waved to the group.


"For those going on the trip, remember, this is a school trip. While you are among friends, you are expected to be on your best behaviour. But we also expect you to have fun. Now let's get this bus rolling!"


The teens let out a cheer and piled onto the bus. Two more parents and another teacher climbed onto the bus as well. The remaining adults, including the principal, converged for a final chat.


"Looks like we're all ready to go," Andrew said. He looked at the fourth teacher. "You know the way, Sam?"


Sam Arnold shook his head and nodded to Nicole. "I know the area, but I figured I'd just follow your wife."


"Good idea, she certainly knows the way," Andrew laughed. He stepped closer to give her a kiss, which elicited various cat calls from the bus.


"Oh cut it out. You can still be taken off the trip," Nicole called out, her big grin showing she wasn't serious. More boos came out of the bus.


Andrew laughed and addressed the adults in front of him. "Right. So you four will get there first and can start unloading. We'll take the bus to the dropoff point at the far end of the coulee, and we'll hike our way in. We should get there late in the afternoon."


"As usual." Nicole confirmed. She tapped the walkie talkie clipped to her belt. "Give us a shout if you get lost and I'll release the hounds."


"Come on, that only happened once," Andrew laughed. The three teachers turned towards the principal for the final words.


"Have fun guys. Wish I could join you, but someone has to be the mature one," he said, shaking hands. "Keep them safe and have a good time."


"We always do." Andrew waved and motioned to the bus. "Let's go!"


The bus cheered as he hopped on board, taking a saved seat just behind the driver. The driver did another quick check before closing the doors and setting off.


Nicole and Emily, the mother of one of the kids, climbed into the truck and waited while Sam and another parent named John got into the van. They followed the school bus through the streets of Medicine Hat, heading for the highway.


An hour or so later, they were driving along some featureless backroads through a spruce forest. They were the only vehicles on the gravel road, and the only ones they had seen for the past ten minutes. Nicole picked up the walkie and pressed the button.


"Chuckwagon to Partybus. This is our turnoff. Good luck guys. Over." she said.


"Roger that Chuckwagon. See you in a few hours. Over," Andrew replied.


Nicole slowed the truck and flicked the signal on. A rustic sign made of logs advertised "Spruce Coulee Camp" with the Scouts emblem on one side. The power line they had been following turned down the gravel driveway, having nowhere else to serve but the camp.


The driveway soon opened up to the actual camp. A large lodge house made of logs was the centre of the campsite, containing the kitchen, a dining room that also served as a large indoor gathering space for the campers. It also contained the bedrooms and bathrooms for the counselors and chaperones.


Behind the lodge were six cabins, three on either side of a large open area centered on the lodge. These were the camper's bunks, with a half dozen bunk beds per cabin. Each cabin also had a small bathroom with a sink, toilet and shower.


The buildings formed a semicircle around a large open space with various rings for fire pits and long log benches to sit on. Depending on how many campers were around, everyone could gather around a central bonfire, or each cabin could have their own campfire. Firewood for the campfires was stacked near the main lodge.


Further away the ground sloped down to the coulee, the small lake that partly gave the camp its name. A small gravel beach provided water access for swimming, along with a short dock with a couple of canoes stacked on a rack nearby.


The two vehicles parked at the rear entrance of the lodge and the adults got out.


"It's a beautiful spot," Emily noted, while stretching out the travel stiffness.


"That it is. We get a great deal on it, and we're usually the last group of the season. The caretakers will close it up for the season next weekend after we're gone." Nicole said.


She grabbed some bags of groceries from the back of the truck and headed for the door. She set them down on the porch and fumbled with a key ring until she found the right one. "Come on, let's get everything put away before it warms up too much."


"How about the phone?" Emily asked, bringing in another few bags of grocery.


Nicole picked up the handset in the kitchen and listened. "Dead as a doornail. Damn, and it was fine last year. We'll be fine. We're not that far from Elkwater; we can get a signal five minutes down the road."


"If you say so," Emily said doubtfully, starting to unpack the bags. Nicole went back out for another load.


An hour later, the vehicles were unloaded and the teens' bags were piled up in the dining hall, waiting to be claimed. Sam and Emily were in the kitchen preparing dinner for the mob that was about to descend upon them. Nicole and Jim had inspected the cabins, and they were now starting the bonfire.


Nicole rested on a sitting log near the main bonfire while Jim coached the flames to life. She leaned back and looked up at the clear skies, the sun taking its leisurely time descending to the west.


"I love it out here. Especially this time of year. Warm enough to do things, but just enough of a chill in the evening to make sleeping nice," she said.


Jim simply grunted, puffing on the kindling as it emitted a lot of smoke but no flames.


"Need a hand?" Nicole offered.


"Nah, I got this. My kid can do this, wouldn't be right if I couldn't," Jim grunted, adjusting the kindling and getting ready to light another match.


She smirked and leaned back, looking up at the sky. "Looks like someone's looking for dinner," she noted. "Multiple someones," she corrected herself, seeing another bird in the sky. "Damn, I left my binocs in the lodge. But that's definitely a hawk of some sort, and the other's an osprey.... There he goes!"


As she watched, the osprey dived out of the sky and splashed into the water of the coulee. The two adults watched as the bird surfaced and took off, a shiny fish gripped in his claws. The osprey took off to the far side of the water, disappearing among the trees, while the hawk continued lazily circling much higher up.


"You're smothering it," Nicole suggested, looking back at Jim's fire attempts. "Stack the kindling more like a teepee, and add a bit more paper and leaves."


She saw him hesitate a moment, before taking her advice. A few minutes later, the nascent bonfire had caught, and he was carefully feeding it bigger pieces of wood.


"Looks like we're all set. They should be getting close, so we should get some snacks ready," she said, heading back to the lodge. She got there just in time to hold the door as Sam hauled a bundle of water bottles out. Emily followed with some fruit trays.


They were just setting up the last of the snacks when the walkie talkie crackled on her belt. Before she could answer, she heard her husband's voice come from the speaker. "On your left. Over."


The adults looked out over the coulee, scanning the eastern shore. Sam spotted the movement first, pointing to a spot just as a gaggle of teens burst out of the treeline. The kids hooted and hollered as they saw the camp and started running along the shore. The multi kilometer hike had done nothing to tame their energy or excitement. The adults trailed them, only slightly less energetic.


"Welcome everyone, welcome," Nicole called out. "Help yourself to snacks and drinks, then go find your gear and claim your bunks. Boys in the cabins on the right, girls in the first two cabins on the left. The last cabin is not being used.


"You'll have the rest of the afternoon to do what you want. The canoes are off limits, as is the forest, but there are balls and other things in the shed over there. If you want to go swimming, get into your swimsuits and head to the lake, but don't go in the water without me or Mr Karnes or Miss Davidson on duty. Be warned, it is probably colder than you expect, but it should be fine."


She got out of the way as the hoard descended on the table and decimated the offered food. She found her husband and gave him a quick hug. "Any problems?"


"None at all. We've got a good bunch this year."


"Good. I've gotta go put my own swimming suit on so I can go on lifeguard duty. You ready to brief the parents?"


"Yup, see you later."


Andrew grabbed an apple and a bottle of water and caught the parents' attention. He motioned to the lodge and headed inside. He found Nicole had already set up what they needed on a dining room table.


"Welcome all of you. And once again, thank you for volunteering to help. We couldn't do this camp year after year without your help," he started once the four parents were present.


"First, your rooms. This lodge has two side wings with rooms for the counselors. There are two bedrooms with a double bed in each off the west wing. Nicole and I will take one, Caleb and Danielle Stevens, you can take the other." The couple nodded, noting the hall he pointed to. They were a married couple with a daughter and niece on the trip.


"The east wing has four smaller rooms, with a pair of twin beds in each. Normally we'd pair people up, but since there are four rooms and four of you, you each get a room. Take your pick. Each wing has a bathroom, so feel free to spread out your toiletries a bit if you need to.


"For the rest of the day, just relax and have fun with the kids. We'll have dinner around six, so if you want to help prepare that it would be welcomed. Some time after it gets dark, I'll break out the telescope and we'll do some stargazing, find the constellations and the planets. Supposedly the sun's a bit extra active tonight so we might get a good view of the aurora too.


"Tomorrow, the fun stuff begins. You'll all be leading a team of six or seven kids. There are a number of stations set up in the woods that the kids know they'll need to navigate to, other than the canoe station at the docks of course. At each station, there will be some lessons and skills to practice and learn. Knot tying, fire making, plant and animal identification, all that sort of thing. Let the kids do most of the work, but if you get lost or anything happens, give a shout on the walkies and Nicole or I will come running. We both know this area like the back of our hand. Nicole will be leading a group, but I'll be in charge of the canoe station, so we should be available and relatively close to anyone who needs help. Any questions?"


The rest of the adults shook their heads. Andrew passed out the walkie talkies, so they could get used to them, and dismissed them.




A while later, Nicole walked out of the lodge, wearing a robe over her one-piece swimming suit, a set of sneakers loosely tied, and a towel draped over her shoulder. The initial snack table frenzy had dissipated as the kids found their gear and spread out to the cabins. Now they were starting to come back out, and half of them were in their swimming suits.


"Okay guys! Beach is open!" Nicole shouted out, earning a cheer from the kids. There was a minor stampede as almost twenty kids headed for the water. She shook her head and followed them, alert for trouble.


On the dock, she removed her shoes and left them behind. She walked out to the end of the dock, sat down and dipped her feet into the water and relaxed a bit, alert for any change in the shouting around her. All too soon, she picked up a change and she looked around to see what was wrong. There were no shouts or any sounds of panic, just a sudden quiet.


The group had four exchange students from around the world visiting for a term or a year in Canada; two boys and two girls. The two girls had left their cabin and were heading for the water. Mai, from Vietnam, was a shy one, wearing a blue one piece swimsuit that matched her dark hair. Patricia was from Brazil, and was wearing a two piece bikini that was borderline too small. It was obvious the teenager had worn that suit before and was used to the reactions it was causing.


"Did you bring that from home?" Nicole asked once the pair got in range. The quieter Mai seemed a bit embarrassed by the looks the rest of the boys were sending her way.


"I did. I've worn it to the beach many times," Patricia confirmed. Both of them spoke English very well. "Though at my beaches, I usually feel overdressed. Here... not so much."


"It is a little small for our normal expectations," Nicole confirmed. She sighed and shook her head, realizing it wasn't a battle worth fighting for now. "Enjoy your swim, ladies."


They tested the water on the shore and exchanged words Nicole couldn't hear. Then they took off their own shoes and made their way out to the end of the dock where Nicole was stationed.


"May I dive?" Mai asked quietly, eyeing the water at the end of the dock. The glare of the sun made it difficult to tell how deep it was.


"Carefully. It is about three metres deep out here so you should miss the bottom," Nicole confirmed. "It might be a bit cooler than you expect, so brace yourself."


Mai smiled happily and crouched again to test the water. Satisfied, she stood up and backed up a few steps. She ran and leaped at the water in a shallow dive. She surfaced meters away and shook her head to clear the water, her long dark hair fanning out behind her.


"Water is good!" she shouted. "Come on in!"


Not needing any more encouragement, Patricia jumped in. Her dive wasn't as nice as Mai's, but she still covered most of the distance before surfacing. She seemed a bit surprised and struggled a little, but not enough that Nicole felt she had to help.


"Are you okay?" she shouted to the students.


"Water's different. No salt," Patricia called back.


"Yeah, you aren't as buoyant in fresh water as you are in salt."


"It's a little cooler too," Patricia said.


Nicole laughed and tested the water again. This late in the summer, it was as warm as it was going to get, but it was fed from mountain runoff which was generally cold to start with. She figured it was in the high teens, fine for Canadian swimmers but a bit of a shock for people used to warmer ocean temperatures.


Out in the coulee, Patricia quickly got her bearings and the pair started swimming deeper towards a platform set up in the coulee where a number of other students were climbing and diving from.


Nicole stood and watched the pair join their classmates. The boys had mostly gotten over Patricia's appearance and had gone back to their own water games along the shore. On the platform, the newcomers were welcomed warmly and soon they joined in the games the group was playing.


A while later, Nicole blew her whistle to catch everyone's attention. Many had already left the coulee to do other things, but there were still over a dozen swimmers in and around the water. "All right everyone! Time to come in! Dinner's in an hour and you need to clean up!" she shouted.


With a lot of grumbling, the water emptied out and the teens reluctantly started back towards the cabins. It was clear their energy levels were finally running out. Nicole did another check for stragglers, and snagged some leftover towels before following them up to the lodge and cabins.




After dinner, they gathered around the bonfire a bit to chat and tell stories. The outside lights were left off so eyes could adjust to the darkness somewhat. Andrew excused himself to head down to the dock to set up the telescope and to get sights on Jupiter and Saturn. Once he was ready, the group went down to the shore and he started his astronomy lesson, pointing to various constellations and stars, and to the visible planets. As people's eyes adapted to the darkness, he brought small groups out to the telescope for closer looks at the planets.


As Andrew had hinted at, the aurora was glowing bright that night, amazing everyone. The blue and green sheets of light in the sky partly obscured the stars, while providing a gorgeous backdrop for skygazing in general.


Nicole chuckled softly as Caleb and Danielle took their own turns. "Never fails. The parents are more excited about the astronomy lesson than the kids are," she said to Sam as they watched from the back of the group.


"I don't blame them. Not often you can see these views. Not in the city," Sam replied. He was laying on the grass, looking up at the Milky Way and the Aurora Borealis.


When everyone had had their chance at the scope, and all the questions were answered, Andrew declared the lesson over. He radioed up to Judy to turn the lodge lights on to help guide them back.


The teachers let the kids have another half hour of campfire time before herding them to bed. "Lights out in fifteen. You don't have to be asleep but you do have to be in bed. Wake up call is at 7." Nicole called out, herding the girls towards their cabin.


A half hour later, the campfire was extinguished, the cabin lights were out and the adults were in the kitchen, cleaning up the last of the dishes.


"Phew, I'm exhausted. Didn't think your camps were this... intense," Caleb said, dropping into a kitchen chair.


"That they are. Nicole and Andrew run a tight ship. But they've got lots of experience," Judy confirmed. "It's only my second trip with them myself. Sam's third I think?"


Sam nodded and finished stacking the pots. "Just wait for tomorrow. You probably want to get a good rest yourselves."


"Are you sure you don't need any more help tonight?" Danielle asked.


Nicole shook her head. "We'll do a final cabin check, then hit the sack ourselves. Sleep well everyone."


While the parents got ready for bed, the teachers took flashlights and went out to do a final cabin check.There was the usual hushed whispering going on, that grew silent as the flashlights lit up the doorway. In each cabin, the teachers flashed the lights over the occupied beds, making sure everyone was at least pretending to sleep, not acknowledging the obvious fakery. When they were satisfied, they returned to the lodge and prepared for bed as well.


Saturday, September 23

Spruce Coulee Camp

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP


A hand reached out from the pile of blankets and fumbled at the noise maker before managing to silence the alarm clock. The male on the other side of the bed groaned softly.


"The one part I hate about camp weekend," Andrew mumbled.


Nicole nudged him and laughed, "Come on, we have to set a good example to everyone else."


She slid out of the bed and stretched a bit before turning on the light. Andrew hissed and buried his head deeper into the blankets. She let him doze a few more minutes while she got dressed and brushed her hair. Before going to the shared bathroom, she yanked the blankets off the bed, showing him in his underwear.


He yelped and reached for the nonexistent sheets. "I'm up! I'm up!"


Nicole laughed and bent down to kiss him. "Good, now get dressed. We've got to get breakfast going for forty hungry mouths."


"Not to mention waking up a bunch of surly groggy teens," Andrew noted, finally sitting up. He scratched himself and yawned again. "I'll be out in a minute."


Nicole stepped out of their bedroom and saw Danielle in the doorway of her own room, dressed in PJs. She looked barely awake. "Wha time isit?" she asked, her words slurring from sleepiness.


"Just after six. You want first dibs?" Nicole asked, pointing to the bathroom on their side of the lodge.


The parent yawned again and seemed to start waking up more. "No, 'sokay. I'll wait," she said. "Gotta get Caleb up."


An hour later, the adults were all up and coffeed. Loads of toast, bacon and eggs were being prepared as groggy teenagers started to wander in. When the first round of breakfast was nearly done, Nicole and Sam visited the cabins to wake the remaining students.Andrew and Judy excused themselves and disappeared into the woods to set up the stations for the day's activities.


By nine, everyone was awake, and breakfast was finished and cleaned up. The kids milled around outside while Andrew organized things. He made sure each adult had a walkie talkie with a full charge, as well as a map of the area. Finally he placed each parent, along with Nicole and Sam, in a line.


"Attention everyone!" he called out. "Attention please!"


Once the noise died down, he continued. "We're going to start today's activities. When I say go, break yourselves up into six groups, one for each adult here. When your groups are done, pick a leader to come get a map pack. That will have the instructions for the route you are to follow. Each group has their own route, so don't just follow someone else.


"We'll leave right at 9:30 to head to your first task, whichever it is. You'll have one hour to get to the task, do it, and clean up after yourselves before heading to the next. The adults will make sure you stay on time, so don't be late. You'll do three tasks in the morning, then we'll come back here for lunch. After lunch, you'll continue on to the last three tasks, and then come back here at the end of the day. Any questions?"


"What if we get lost?" Varujan asked. He was the exchange student from Romania.


"First of all, always stay in your group. If you get lost, your chaperones all have radios and they can call for us. Mrs Karnes, Miss Davidson, Mr Arnold and I all know the area and we should be able to figure out where you are and get to you. If you see something notable near you, like the shore of the coulee, move to that, but otherwise, stop moving.


"If you DO get separated from your group for some reason, stop right away and wait. Either your group will be coming back for you, or another group will be looking for you. Or your chaperone will be calling for us to start searching. But the important thing is to stay in one place."


"What if we see a bear?" Mai asked timidly.


"Hopefully you won't, but it is a wild forest out there. If you see any big animals, be it bears, moose or anything else, keep your distance and try to back away from it. Do not approach them. Your chaperones should call it in as well to warn the rest of us, and depending on where it is, we might need to call you in."


"Remember, you don't need to be fast. You just need to be faster than the person next to you," Johnny, one of the students, joked.


"That's not really a good joke out here," Andrew admonished the teen. "No running, just back away and hope they don't notice you. Being in a big group is actually to your advantage. We're too big and noisy for most animals to want to take us on. So stay together."


There were a few more questions, and then the teens split up into the groups. Nicole found herself leading a group of six, two girls and four boys. She was surprised the girls had joined her; they were Caleb and Danielle's daughter and niece. She peeked at the other groups and noticed Emily's son and Jim's son were with Sam's group of seven.


"All right, who wants to be a leader?" Nicole asked, scanning her team.


Angela quickly stepped forward, as Nicole had half expected. She handed the girl the map.


"Our first task will be the fire lighting challenge. It's the area marked 'F' on the map. You can start figuring out how to get there now."


The teacher stepped back as the teens huddled over the map. Heads popped up to look for landmarks, comparing them to the map. Nicole knew the fire making site was a clearing on a stream that fed into the far end of the coulee. She took a moment to check out the rest of the groups. All but the canoe group were studying maps; the canoeing group just had to go to the dock so they didn't have to navigate anything yet.


Andrew checked his watch and caught the attention of the adults. He raised an airhorn and started a silent countdown from 5. He blared it, making the kids jump in surprise. "That's your cue! Time to get going. You have one hour to get to your task and finish it," he shouted.


The groups scattered in six directions, four of the groups heading to the woods right away. Danielle's group raced down to the docks, while Danielle and Andrew took their time to follow them. Nicole followed Angela and the rest of her group down to the shore. She was proud the teen had realized the easiest route would be along the shore to the point the brook reached the coulee.


Fifteen minutes later, they were following the brook to a small clearing. Andrew and Sam had gone out the afternoon before to do most of the setup, followed by the supply run Andrew and Judy had done that morning. It meant that the equipment they needed was all in place. Six spots had been staked out, each with sealed bags containing firemaking supplies. A pile of tinder and dry wood was stacked to one side of the area. The brook gurgled through the clearing, with a couple of buckets handy to extinguish the fire after the challenge.


"Claim a square and read the instructions. Your goal is to light a fire just with what is supplied. You get bonus points if you can light it without the matches," Nicole explained.


The group picked their spot and grabbed the plastic covered sheet of instructions, guiding them in how to prepare the fire. Some spread out to start gathering supplies.


Pakowki, Alberta

The school bus pulled into the parking lot of the regional high school, stopping in the line with a half dozen other buses from schools across south eastern Alberta. Up a small hill was the soccer field, already surrounded by a small crowd, mainly the players and spectators for the tournament continuing that day.


Mike Griffith stood up at the front of the bus and scanned the students waiting to get off. They seemed in good spirits despite the tough loss the day before. Still, it was a coach's job to give them a boost, and this was as good a time to lift them as any.


"Okay girls, I know yesterday was a rough loss, but let's put that behind us. We have two more games today, and an excellent chance to get into the finals tomorrow. So let's go out there and kick butt!"


The twenty girls let out a cheer. He smiled at them and turned around, leaving the bus. The rest of the soccer team climbed down after him and headed for the field. They had the first match of the day so they only had a short time to get settled and ready.


The Etzikom-Pakowki tournament was one of the bigger ones held in their corner of the province. It was a chance for the eight high schools in the area to face off over a weekend to figure out the best of the best. The biggest tournament would be held in November when the district finals would be decided. But this tournament was always an important milestone, as it gave the teams a chance to get a good feel for how they ranked against their opponents for the year.


This year, Etzikom was hosting the boys teams while Pakowki, on the southern shore of its namesake lake, hosted the girls teams. For the Leo Mayes girls team, the first match on Friday had been a tough loss against Coutts, a school on the border with Montana. They had two more matches today that Mike was sure they would dominate in.


A half hour later, they were sitting on their bench on the side of the field. Their first opponents would be Aden Regional; a smaller school that had a lot of younger students. Mike didn't expect them to be much of a challenge, but he tried to keep his expectations hidden.


Across the field, technically across two fields, another pair of teams were setting up. The elementary and high school each had a soccer field, but the two fields were side by side, sandwiched between the two schools. This let them share resources when needed, like for this tournament.


The sun was shining bright in a clear sky. The temperature was just in the low twenties, but everyone could tell it was going to be a scorcher before too long. Thankfully there wasn't much humidity in the air, but it would make for a long, hot day.


The time keeper caught Mike's eye and held up his hand, indicating a five minute warning. Mike nodded and refocused on his team. "Okay girls, it's time to get started. Play a good game, play a nice game. Play a clean game. We're all here to have fun, and we have a lot of games left to play both in this tournament and for the season. I don't want anyone having to go home early due to stupid mistakes, got it?" He let his gaze linger on a couple of the more aggressive players just long enough to see they got the message. "Now huddle up and then hit the field."


The teens gathered around him and put their hands in the center. With a loud, "GO LIONS!" a bunch of them jogged out onto the field.


Further down the field, the other team let out their own cheer and joined them. Along the sidelines, spectators started shouting and cheering as well. Most of them were members of the other teams, due to play the next matches. There were also a lot of family and friends present as well, ready to cheer their own teams.


Mike walked behind the bench where the rest of the team was settling down, nodding to his co-coach, Tammy Stairs. He snagged a bottle of water and watched as the referee brought the captains to the centre and did the coin toss. Aden won the toss and picked to shoot first.


Cindy, the team captain gave him a thumbs up signal and waved for her teammates to join in on a final huddle. They chatted for a few moments, occasionally glancing over to the other team or to the sidelines. Finally they let out another cheer and broke apart, taking their positions for the kickoff. The other team broke their huddle about the same time and soon they were facing off across the centre line.


The referee nodded to the teams and glanced over to the sidelines to verify everyone was ready. The time keeper gave a thumbs up. The referee nudged the ball a final time and backed a few steps away. He raised his hand and the field grew silent. The whistle blew, his hand lowered, and the crowd roared as the Aden team raced for the ball. The match was on.


Spruce Coulee Camp

Ten minutes after arriving at the fire making challenge site, the kids were gathered around a small pile of dried grasses and sticks talking about what they wanted to do. Nicole was glad they had ignored the 'trap' of the bow and string, and they were instead using the provided flint and scraper. They were focused on Russel who was scraping the flint, making sparks that landed on the pile and almost ignited it.


"Mrs Karnes, something's wrong with my fingers," Catherine called out. She was holding her hands up, the tips of her fingers were dark black. As she watched, the black spots began to grow longer, becoming pointed.


A chill went down Nicole's spine and she looked down at her own hands. The tips of her fingers and thumbs were changing, the nails thickening and growing out while darkening. She froze and stared, partly in denial.


"Mrs Karnes?" Angela spoke up this time, noticing the distress in her cousin's voice. She was now looking at her own hands. "What's happening?"


"Shit," Nicole muttered before forcing her professional filters back into place. She had a good idea what was happening, the current events portion of her social studies classes had covered the event extensively last spring. She had never conceived of the notion it would affect her.


"It's a Titan event," she said softly. She took a deep breath and looked at her hands again. Her nails had disappeared, covered over with orange pebbly skin. At her fingertips black talons were growing out. "It's a Titan event," she said, louder. Her six charges were looking at her now. "Douse the fire!" she shouted, while reaching for the walkie talkie. One of the boys grabbed the filled bucket and dumped it over the smoldering embers.


Before she could press the talk button, the radio crackled to life, multiple people speaking.


"What's going on?" Danielle asked.


"Appening?" Caleb asked.


"You seeing?" Sam called out.


Nicole pressed the send button, and shouted, "QUIET!.Quiet please! Remember radio etiquette!. Quiet!" Her mind raced as she tried to figure out what to do. At the last moment she remembered the etiquette she was reminding the others to use, and said "Over," before releasing the button. Her fingers were covered in that strange orange skin now, and tipped with increasingly sharp looking talons.


The radio was quiet for a few moments before Andrew came on. "Something is happening. Everyone, make sure your station is safe and stowed away as best you can, then sound off and confirm your status. Alpha squad? Over."


"Alpha squad here. We're changing, but we're safe. Over," Sam said.


"Beta squad?"


The rest of the groups sounded off one at a time. It was clear they were all being affected. By the time he reached Nicole's group, Zeta Squad, her entire hand was covered in that strange orange skin. She flexed her fingers and pressed the strange talons on the ends of her fingers against the back of her other hand. She could feel the sharp point on the strange skin.


"Oh, Zeta squad here. We're affected. Fire's out and we're safe... As safe as we can be, Over."


"Thanks Nicole. This is a Titan change right?... Over."


"I think so. But I'm not experiencing what they did. I've... we've got talons now. They have regular hands and hooves.... Over."


"Yeah, we're getting some nasty looking fingernails here too. But assuming it's similar, what should we expect? Over."


She took a deep breath, and gathered her thoughts. When news of the strange centaurs at Titan's Step broke last March, she had cooked up a full lesson plan on the event on the fly as news came in. She'd never expected her to be living a similar event.


"We should expect strangeness. We're not becoming centaurs, but we are becoming something. The Titans took a full day to change, so we should expect something similar. Get comfortable, and stay safe. It sounded like everyone was at their stations, so stay put. Don't try to get back to the camp. It's better to be at a known location than to be wandering through the woods while our bodies are changing."


She paused and sighed. The strange skin was halfway up her forearms now. "Try to stay calm. Many Titans claimed they couldn't be anything but calm anyway, but really there's nothing we can do about it. All we can do is wait it out and pick up the pieces on the other side." She stopped, then remembered again and clicked the button. "Over."


"Thanks dear. You heard Mrs Karnes. Everyone, try to stay calm, to relax, and stay put. We'll try to check in periodically as best we can. We'll help each other through this mess and figure out what to do after. Over."


It reached her elbows and seemed to stop. She flexed her hands, finding them mostly felt like she was used to, but they looked very strange, very... birdlike?


"This isn't it, is it?" Ryan asked.


"I doubt it. But I don't know what's next," Nicole said, trying to think of what would be a good thing to do.


The radio crackled, making most of her group jump in surprise. "Uhm guys, Emir isn't changing. Maybe it's only affecting locals?" Caleb asked. "Over."


Nicole picked up her walkie and clicked it. "I doubt that's the case. Titan had a lot of non-local people changing. A dozen Canadians, almost a hundred Mexicans, and maybe a couple hundred random non-North Americans. Over."


"Yeah, it's a nice theory, Dear, but I've got Mia and Patricia in my group and they're both changing. Over," Danielle countered.


"Varujan is in my group and he's changing. On the other hand, Ricky's here too and he's not changing," Sam pointed out. "Over."


Nicole pieced things together and remembered another aspect of the Titan change she should have remembered before. Ricky and Emir were the youngest and smallest of the kids they'd brought. "Puberty," she said over the radio. "Ricky and Emir just aren't mature enough for whatever this uses. So you two should be fine. Lucky you.... Over."


Out of habit, she went to clip the walkie talkie to her belt, and had a sudden realization. She almost tripped, trying to do multiple things at once. The kids looked at her in surprise while she stopped and forced herself to calm down. "Everyone, get your shoes and belts off. Anything tight that might be constricting. Jewelry and watches too if you can get them off. And jackets if you wore one. Do it now while you still can. You don't want to have them on if you're getting bigger. Over."


She dropped the radio, not waiting for a response while she fumbled at her belt, trying to loosen it with her taloned fingers. She looked around and made sure her charges were doing similar. Once the belt was down, she knelt down and tugged at the laces of her boots. They were much easier to loosen and get off. She looked at her hand, seeing the wedding band, it was tight on her new fingers, but not constricting at least, so she decided it was a lost cause for now. She was able to get her watch off and let it drop on her boots.


"Mrs Karnes, should we remove our socks too?" one of the boys asked. They were all bent over, fumbling with shoe laces to get their footwear off.


"If you want. I know we're outside, but we might not have a choice. But socks would be easier to get off if we need to later. Shoes and belts, once they start tightening it would be harder to get them off."


"Mrs Karnes, what about our... you know," Catherine asked, pointing to her chest with a taloned finger.


Nicole suddenly realized another thing she was wearing that could become constricting. "Shit," she mumbled, her mind whirling. "Get them off girls. Boys, turn around please," she ordered. Asking students to take their bras off was highly inappropriate, but these were clearly extraordinary circumstances.


She waited long enough to make sure the boys were all turned away, before turning to one side as well. Angela and Catherine were helping each other, also facing away from the group. The teacher pulled her shirt out of her pants and reached back. While she was used to unhooking the undergarment normally, the talons got in the way, forcing her to tug and squirm more than normal. Finally, she felt the garment release and she was able to wiggle it off her shoulders and pull it free.


"Are you okay?" she asked the other girls once she was done. Catherine's bra was on the ground and she had Angela's shirt up to help her cousin get it off. Once the women had tugged their shirts back down, Nicole was able to relax a bit.


"It's safe guys, you can turn around again," she announced. The four boys faced them again, and didn't react to the undergarments on the ground. Nicole could see the barely constrained fear in their eyes. "It's okay. We're in this together. We'll get through it," she tried to reassure them. She could feel her own fears and terrors lurking in the back of her mind, present but constrained somehow.


Etzikom Regional High School

"How's it going?" a man asked next to the coach.


Brian looked over, a little annoyed at the distraction at first, but he squished it when he realized who was asking. A man in a motorized wheelchair had just arrived at the end of the player's bench. His wife stood next to him, looking out on the field, focusing on one of the players. The man had obviously been through a lot a long time ago; his right leg was gone and his right arm had a prosthetic on his elbow. His face showed extensive scarring, including an eye patch.


"Morning, Scott, Beth. It's going great so far. Both teams are firing on all cylinders," Brian responded, greeting them warmly. The couple were parents to one of the players, and major supporters of the team in general. Scott O'Brian was retired military, injured in an IED blast in Afghanistan.


"That's good to hear. Sorry we missed the first half. The van's having some motor problems," Beth explained.


"I'm sorry to hear that. Nothing too bad I hope?" Brian said, glancing back on the field to make sure nothing urgent needed his attention. The teams were taking a bit of a breather, jogging into position while the ball carrier stalled for time. His team had the ball and was just kicking it between two of the forwards.


"Nah, nothing bad. The lift motor just slips more than it should. We've had it looked at and the parts will be in next week," Scott said. He raised his good hand and gave a thumbs up towards the Leo Mayes Lions mascot who had stopped near the parents and was waving to them. The cartoonish lion mascot waved again and started raising his hands to encourage the crowd to cheer.


As if they were waiting for that cue, one of the forwards passed the ball towards Ryan Griffith, the son of the girl's coach. The young man smoothly caught the pass and kicked it forward, sprinting towards the goal, easily showing why he was one of the team's stronger players.


The Etzikom defenders converged on him, but before they could intercept, he glanced to one side to get his target, and sent the ball flying to his left. Chris O'Brian caught it and continued the push forward. One of the defenders started sprinting towards him, while Ryan dodged around to get in position if needed. It was obvious where this play was going.


The crowd roared in anticipation, many rising to their feet. Scott and Beth cheered their son along, their previous discussion forgotten.


Chris and the goalie were facing off, the rest of the players chasing after the fast forward. The goalie stepped forward a bit, focused on the attack. The crowd grew silent in anticipation. Chris glanced around quickly and focused over the goalie's left shoulder. The goalie shifted a little in anticipation, only for Chris to suddenly kick the ball sideways.


Ryan just managed to catch it and booted it into the empty side of the goal.


The crowd erupted in cheers as the two boys met and high-fived each other. The goalie looked a bit dejected as he backed up to retrieve the ball. The Lion mascot leaped and ran along the side of the field joyfully. The boys jogged back to their side of the field, catching up with teammates along the way and catching their breath. They didn't notice at first how the crowd was quieting down faster than usual; an uneasy mumble replacing the cheering. Behind them, the goalkeeper had taken his gloves off and was rubbing his fingers, seeing his nails growing longer.


On the field, Ryan finally noticed the change in the crowd noise. He looked around in confusion as he jogged back towards the center field. More and more people were focusing elsewhere, looking at their hands or looking at the people next to them. In the distance, on the other field, he could hear loud whistles being blown. He glanced at his own hands and stumbled, seeing his skin was darkening, his nails growing longer and pointier on the ends of his finger tips, the skin at the base of the nails swelling around so the nails seemed to come more from the ends of his fingertips instead of the tops of them.


"Shit! What's happening?" Chris asked next to him.


"I... I don't know," Ryan replied. It was obvious now that the hands of most of the players were changing now.


The referee finally snapped out of his own daze and gave a loud blast from his whistle. Everyone looked up at him, panic and confusion showing on their faces. "Everyone to your benches. Gather up with your friends and family if you can," the referee shouted, pointing towards the side of the field. "Game's on hold obviously."


The players abandoned the field and regrouped around their benches, looking to their coaches for advice and support. By the time the goalkeepers reached the benches, almost everyone had changed hands. The skin of their hands and forearms had taken on a scaly texture, with colours ranging from black to greys to oranges. Their fingers and thumbs had also grown large talons with sharp tips, more reminiscent of birds of prey than humans.


"Mom! Dad!" Chris called out, rushing to his parents. He hugged his mom tightly but carefully. "What's going on?"


"We don't know," his mom said. "But we're together, that's the main thing."


"It might be a Titan event maybe?" his father suggested. He squirmed uneasily in his chair, rubbing the prosthetic arm with his changed hand. It was obviously fitting less well. Finally he pulled it off and his eyes widened, seeing new, scaly flesh growing out at an unnatural rate. He wiggled the stub, uncertainty obvious on his face.


"Are you okay, Dad?" Chris asked.


"I think so. It... It tingles."


Meanwhile, Ryan had cornered his coach. "Mr Boyd, are the phones working? How far is this going? Can you reach my dad and the other team?"


"The other team? Oh right!" Brian snapped out of his stupor and reached for his phone. He winced as his talons jabbed into his thigh. It took him a few tries to extricate the device from his pocket.


Ryan leaned closer to the teacher and watched as the coach struggled with the phone. The talons obviously made using the device harder, but it still recognized the touch of their fingertips, despite their changed skin. Brian managed to get his contacts up and placed a call. Everyone who noticed what the coach was doing watched silently, listening to the phone ring, the signal sputtering occasionally.


An eternity later, the call connected. Ryan held his breath, half expecting the voice mail message to come on. Instead, there was a burst of static and the noise of people talking in the distance.


"Brian? Are you guys okay?" Mike's familiar voice came out clearly.


"We're here. We're... okay I guess. Are you affected too?" Brian asked, feeling both relieved and scared.


"Bird talons for our hands? Yeah we're affected too. It's a Titan event, but different." Mike was a biology teacher when he wasn't coaching, so he'd already done a lot of research on the Titan event the previous spring.


"What should we do? How far is it going?" Ryan asked, shouting a bit louder than he probably had to.


"That you Ry? Good to hear your voice," Mike replied. "It's too soon to tell. Hopefully it didn't reach home, but we won't know for a bit yet. Best thing we can do is just relax and ride it out."


"Can't we stop this? I don't want to be a monster!" a girl on the other end of the line asked, loud enough to be heard.


"I'm sorry, we can't stop it. We don't even know what it is. But we won't be monsters. We'll be different, but we're still people," Mike assured her.


Brian glanced down the bench and saw Scott stretching his arms out. Both arms were nearly the same size now, with the strange scaled hands on both limbs. He wiggled his new fingers, an expression of joy on his face despite the situation they were going through.


"Look, there's nothing we can do but endure this. Try to keep everyone together and comfortable as best you can. It's probably going to take most of the day. Once it's done, we'll get in touch and figure out what to do next," Mike said.


"Right, good call. Good luck guys. We'll talk later," Brian said.


"Bye Dad. Love you," Ryan called out.


"Love you too. Be careful," Mike said before the line went dead.


Almost immediately the phone began to ring, but it cut out just as fast. A strange error message appeared complaining about network congestion. Behind the error, notices trickled in; Clearly people were trying to reach the coach. Brian eyed the device and then his fingers. "I don't know what to do..." he said.


"Just put it away for now. We're in no condition to handle it right now. We have to look after the people here," Jacob McMillon said. He was the other coach of the team.


"Could someone please help me get out of this?" a frustrated girl asked. The lion mascot had taken the head of the costume off, revealing a young woman. She was struggling to figure out how to get the rest of the costume off. She'd taken off the gloves, showing her own changed hands, but she couldn't manage to get a good enough grip on the top to pull it off.


"Here Crystal, let me help," Ryan said, rushing over to help. Together with another teammate, they managed to get the bulky top of the costume off.


Once she was clear, she visibly relaxed a bit more. She managed to hook her new talons around the suspenders of the lower half of the costume and tugged them off her shoulders so she could step out of the rest. She kicked the costume to one side. Under the suit, she wore a simple t-shirt, shorts and socks.


"Thanks guys. I was really beginning to panic there. I had to get out of that."


Ryan gave her a careful hug to comfort her. The pair had been friends since elementary school and a couple for years. "Sorry, I should have thought of you first."


They winced as they heard some feedback from a megaphone. One of the organizers had moved out onto the field.


"Obviously something is going on. We don't know how long it will take but if it's like the Titans it'll probably take most of the day. We don't know how mobile we'll be through the day, so we're opening the school up now, and you can try to get inside if you think you can. For people who aren't affected, please try to help where you can, both in looking after the young kids and babies, and helping the affected people. I'd advise getting any young folk inside, since it looks like it's going to be a hot day." the organizer hesitated, struggling to think of anything else to say while trying not to look at his own scaled hands. He ultimately shrugged and lowered the megaphone.


Almost immediately there was a small flood of people heading for the school building. Most of them were obviously families, herding toddlers or carrying babies to the building. The older kids and teens who weren't changing wandered around; some helping friends and family get inside, others just hanging out or seeking other unchanged people.


"Should we try to go inside?" Chris asked while looking around. His teammates didn't seem eager to move. He noted a couple didn't have the changed hands, but most of them did. He moved over to stand near his parents who were as lost as the kids were. His father was still a bit distracted by his regenerated hand. His other hand was squeezing his legs a bit, as they began to tingle with healing nerves. He also realized everyone seemed to be going bald, their hair thinning as it disappeared, not falling out, but leaving a lot of bare scalps all around.


"I don't know, Coach Boyd? What should we do?" Beth asked.


Brian seemed to be at a loss, then shrugged. "We should probably try to stay close together. But if you want to go inside, go ahead. We'll probably want space more than anything. And try to keep water nearby if you can. I'm not sure if we'll be in any shape to drink but if it gets hot, we'll probably want it."


By then everyone was obviously bald, but the hair hadn't fallen out. Some who were standing began to shift uneasily from foot to foot. It was obvious the next part of the event was starting.


"Right, try to get comfortable everyone! It's going to be a long day," Jacob called out. The other coach rubbed his now bald head carefully as he surveyed the area. He rubbed one foot against the other and looked down at his sneakers.


"Crap, right, we should get those off. Get your shoes off everyone before they cause problems!" he called out. He sat down on the grass and started pulling at the laces. It was obvious he was just in time; the ends of his feet were already swelling, no longer looking human.


Ryan and Crystal sat down next to each other, partly leaning against the mascot costume. Ryan pulled off his sneakers while Crystal looked at her own sock-covered feet. The end of her foot was growing larger and the rest of the foot was stretching out and swelling. The heel was engulfed in flesh, looking more like a strange reversed knee instead of a heel.


"What the hell is going on?" Crystal asked. "What are we becoming?"


Ryan could only shrug, unable to answer her question. "I have no idea. Damn, I wish dad was here... Or Mrs Karnes. They might have some better ideas."


Crystal rested her changed hand on his thigh, not quite squeezing it, but the touch made him jump a bit. "I know, but they aren't here. We'll get through it I guess. The Titans did after all."


He nodded and put his own changed hand over hers for the little comfort it gave them. They both looked down at their feet, wiggling their toes and seeing the sharp claws extend that had replaced their toenails. It was a scary sight to see.


Spruce Coulee Camp

Silence fell over the group as they waited, trying to figure out what would be next. The first obvious sign of someone noticing something was Ryan raising a hand to touch his head. No one said anything, but it was quickly obvious their hair was thinning out somehow. It wasn't falling out, and it wasn't itchy, but every moment that passed, it was obvious they had less hair. It was most obvious with Catherine; she had had shoulder length blond hair, but by the time people realized what was happening, her hair had shortened significantly.


Nicole raised her hand to her head and felt her own locks. Her brown hair had been kept somewhat short for the summer, and now it felt like she had a buzzcut. Looking around at her charges and thinking about what was about to happen, she made a decision.


"This is going to get a lot stranger soon. If you want a bit of privacy to try and handle this, you can move into the woods. Don't go far, make sure I know where you are and that you can still see me."


Angela and Catherine whispered quickly and made their choice, moving behind a clump of bushes near the tree line. Nicole wasn't surprised to see them go that way, and was privately glad they had moved off, but were still supporting each other. Tony also moved away after thinking a bit. He was one of the shiest boys on the trip. She was surprised he was changing, since he didn't seem any further through puberty than Emir or Ricky were, but he clearly was. The other three boys stayed put, but spread out a bit.


"If you need any help or anything, please call out. I'm here to help as best I can," Nicole called out, making sure she knew exactly where the other three students were. By then, their heads were completely bald. She rubbed her smooth head, a bit sad by the loss, and moved over to a fallen log to sit down.


While most of the kids settled down on spots they could get comfortable at, Russel stayed standing. He paced a bit, clearly trying to work off nervous energy. Nicole kept a wary eye on him, but he seemed fine otherwise. His pacing brought him over to the ruins of their firemaking attempt, and he suddenly stopped and started hoping, shaking his foot, his sock clearly soaked in mud. "Dude, your foot," Jeremy pointed out suddenly. All eyes turned to him as the standing student froze and looked down.


The end of his sock was stretched wider than normal. Ryan hopped a few steps away and dropped onto a dry spot of grass and started pulling his sock off. The revealed foot was inhuman; the end of the foot was swollen and wider. The big toe had shrunk significantly, making the middle toes a bit more dominant. The nails were being engulfed in flesh, while beginning to grow longer and pointier.


Nicole shook her head and focused on her own body. She realized her feet were similarly beginning to swell, and leaned forward to strip off her socks. Her new claws were already catching on the cotton. Once her feet were revealed, she wiggled her toes and saw the claws extend and pull back a bit. She squeezed her toes a few times and realized she had a lot of control over those large claws. The big toe had disappeared entirely, leaving four large toes left on her foot.


She rubbed the end of her feet carefully, testing the claw with the back of her talon and could feel the tugging. She discovered the bottom of her feet were developing thick rough grey pads on the bottom of each toe and the base of her foot. She couldn't easily tell but the rest of her foot seemed to be rounding out a bit, her heel lifting up, the skin smoothing out. She put her foot back on the ground and could tell she couldn't place it flat any more, her heel and ankle were angled the wrong way. She would have to learn to walk on her toes.


"Okay... Okay... It's not so bad so far," she mumbled to herself, glancing around at her charges. They had stripped off their socks and were rubbing their feet. Some seemed fascinated by their claws, others were just rubbing. As she watched, she realized most of them had a fuzz growing over their feet as fur started sprouting.


She looked at her own feet, and saw a similar pelt was starting to grow out. She rubbed it and felt the fur growing rapidly, covering her toes and the top of her feet, and starting up the rest of her foot. Her fur had a tawny colour to it, but it was obvious other colours were possible. Around her she saw black, browns and orange fur growing, often with patterns. The colouring and patterns all seemed to be feline based, without any of the extremes that the Titans had.


"Thank goodness," she mumbled again. She'd shown many pictures of Titans when covering their change in class, and the variety and extreme patterns and colours were a lot to take in. She was glad whatever they were becoming seemed closer to normal.


"Everyone still good?" she called out, figuring now was a good time for a quick status check. She wiggled her legs and stretched a bit. It was clear their leg structure was changing a lot, even as the fur disappeared up her pants legs.


"We're good. I... I don't think I can walk just yet," Angela called out.


"That's fine. We're safe here. Just wait it out and it should sort itself out," Nicole shouted back.


"I'm fine," Tony replied from the other end of the clearing, hidden behind some bushes there. The rest of the boys nodded slowly.


A couple of the boys were wearing shorts, so she could see the changing legs more clearly on them. Their thighs seemed to be shrinking a bit, pulling their knees up. But the leg length stayed mostly the same as the back part of the foot and heel stretched longer to make up the difference. She wiggled her own legs a bit, her pants fitting strangely with the new joint locations.


The boys were squirming uncomfortably where they were sitting, some rubbing at their groins. She made sure to look away and focused on herself. Reluctantly, she unbuttoned her jeans, her talons making it more difficult. She didn't want to take her pants off, but she realized she needed a bit more slack just in case. She tugged her t-shirt up a bit and noticed the tawny fur had come up her legs and over her groin and hips and was coming up her belly now. Strangely, it didn't seem to be coming up her sides as far as she could tell. The thick fur pressed down by her underwear and jeans was very uncomfortable.


Another subtle glimpse at the boys gave a hint of the next change. They'd all loosened their pants and Jeremy had taken his jeans off, but was still in boxers. His fur was primarily orange with some white streaks, similar to orange cats. He tugged his t-shirt off and tossed it on the ground next to him. When he noticed Nicole looking at him, he just shrugged. With just his underwear on, it was obvious the fur stopped around his hips, other than the spot that ran up his belly and chest. His hands had turned dark black, and now the rest of his skin was darkening.


Nicole checked her own arms and sides, and found her own skin seemed somewhat unchanged, or maybe a bit paler; she couldn't really tell. The fur had grown up to her chest now and was spreading over her breasts, making her shirt itchy. She tugged her shirt a bit to try and get more comfortable, trying not to think of what was going on under it.


While she was checking her sides, she realized there was a bump forming on her rump. It was like an extension of her spine that grew out over her furred butt. It swelled to be about the size of her hand as best as she could guess. As it grew, it began to tingle almost painfully, pins and needles feelings emanating from it like when she'd been sitting on her foot for too long. She grunted a bit and tried to will the tingling away. She reached back and rubbed it a bit to help wake it up, and to her surprise it twitched in her grip. She tried to focus on it, and soon realized she could control it; it felt like she was squeezing her butt but different somehow.


She experimented a little, realizing it was surprisingly mobile. She could pull it down until it was flat against her butt, or lift it up. She could even swing it from side to side or in a full circle. Most strangely, she sensed she could 'squeeze' it. Nothing much seemed to happen, but it felt like that was an important skill.


The teacher looked around and saw her charges were similarly puzzled by their stubby tails. Most had figured out how to move them and were showing off as best they could.


The radio crackled as Andrew came on. "Just checking in. How's everyone doing? We... We've got bird hands here, and cat feet and legs or something like that. And some sort of tail. Everyone else experiencing similar? Over..... Sound off in team order. Over."


"Alpha team here. We're in similar shape. Everyone's good considering. Over," Sam replied.


"Beta team. All I can say is ditto. This isn't like the Titans. Over," Danielle said. "Are Catherine and Angela okay?"


Nicole decided to jump the line and clicked on quickly. "Zeta team here. Angela and Catherine are fine. Or as good as the rest of us," she confirmed, glancing towards the bushes where the girls were hiding. Catherine peeked around and nodded silently. "Over."


"Jim, your kid is doing good too. Along with the rest of my crew. We backed up to the lodge before things got too strange, Over." Andrew confirmed.


"Thank you. We're good here, besides being stuck in the woods. Over," Jim reported.


"Same out here. Anyone know what we might be becoming?" Caleb asked. "Over."


Nicole shook her head out of habit. The radio crackled a bit. "I think I know. Our hands look like birds, and our feet, they're cat-like. Part bird, part cat, that implies a griffon," Sam said. "Over."


"Griffons? But those don't exist!" Danielle protested.


"Neither did centaurs, but there are thousands of them existing fine down in Colorado now. Over." Nicole snapped back, a little more forcefully than she intended. Sam's theory did make sense. She kicked herself for not thinking of it. History was one of her domains, but she tended to teach more modern history, not mythological subjects. Sam was the music teacher, but he also taught English and some art classes, so it made sense for him to recognize their theme.


"We're still baking, but it's a good theory. You might want to prepare for it. Which implies some sort of wings probably," Andrew said, diplomatically, trying to keep the peace.


She dropped the radio and tried to relax. Her shoulders and back were aching and felt strange. The talk of wings worried her as she wiggled her shoulders, trying to work the strange ache out. There were times her chest tightened, making it harder to breath, but it released as quickly as it tightened. She looked at the boys who were waiting with her and saw they'd all ditched their shorts and pants now, along with their shirts. Two had boxers on, but Ryan had briefs. She looked away before she could look closely, knowing nothing about this situation was really appropriate.


Reluctantly, she turned away from them and lifted her shirt up. The talk of wings made her realize that wearing a shirt would soon be a bad idea, whether the wings came from her arms or from new limbs. Her talons tore a few holes in it, but she managed to get it off and set it on the log next to her. For the first time she could look down and see how the fur had covered her breasts, making them look bigger than they were before. Her nipples were mostly hidden among the tawny fur, darker than she remembered but otherwise the same.


"I don't know what's next, but Sam made a good point about wings. If you haven't yet, you should take your shirts off," she called out. She looked over her shoulder at the boys, but they were too focused on themselves to have noticed her own nakedness.


"We already did," Angela confirmed.


"So did I," Tony answered.


"Keep them handy. We'll have to clean up around here when we're done," she said. She shook her arms, the pins and needles feeling beginning to spread through her limbs. Her arms dropped to her side as they went numb.


"Mrs Karnes!" the boys called out in unison. It was obvious they'd all experienced the same numbness almost at the same time.


"I know, I know. I can't feel my arms. Just relax and wait it out," she tried to reassure them. That they were depending on her helped keep her own panic and terror in check, even if the artificial barrier she could sense wasn't leeching those feelings away before they could overwhelm her. "It'll be over soon. I'm sure it will."


Something was obviously happening, even though she couldn't directly feel it. A strange weight was forming on her back, pulling her backwards a little. She looked over her shoulder and saw bulges at her shoulders, beginning to grow out. They looked like arms, muscular with some sort of inner bone structure she couldn't figure out. They grew slowly, extending out behind her, and she realized they had joints as well, an elbow and wrist that divided it like her natural arm. The new limbs hung from her back, as limp as her natural arms, eventually reaching the ground.


Since she was already partly turned, she twisted a bit further and checked on the boys. They were focused on themselves. Craig and Jeremy were close enough that their new limbs were touching, and the pair were squirming to try and pull away. With limp arms and awkward feet, their movements were not really effective. Russel watched, far enough from them to not be touching, but one of his limbs was growing into the stream now and he was trying to tilt and twist enough to keep it out of the water. All told, these new limbs were long, each one longer than they were tall. It was obvious, these wings were going to be huge.


Nicole winced as her headache returned. It was soon followed by the intense pins and needles feeling of wakening muscles. It was a confusing sensation, as she felt it not just from her arms, but also from the new limbs. It was strange to sense the ground those bare wings were laying on.


The tingling intensified, and she reflexively tried to shake her arms to wake them up. Her limbs didn't react. She closed her eyes and focused on the feelings, feeling her mind somehow manage to separate the sensations from each limb. She could feel the new wings hanging off her back, part of them touching the ground. She could also feel her regular arms at her sides, hands resting on her jean covered lap. With a bit more forced concentration, she felt her muscles start to recover, her fingers tingling and twitching as her hands woke up.


She opened her eyes and raised her hands, looking at her taloned fingers again. The tingling sensation faded slowly as she wiggled and shook her arms out. She lifted the wings off the ground, becoming aware of the three main parts of the limbs and how they could move. The range of movement was somewhat similar to her hand and arm, but different; that she could control the limbs at all amazed her.


There was a thump near her, and Russel let out a yelp of pain. Nicole twisted around, her wings lifting up and pulling back without her really thinking of them. She saw the boy wincing in pain, his own wing shaking a bit, the end of it near a tree. It was obvious he had hit the tree with the wing.


"Are you okay?" she asked.


He nodded and sighed. "Yeah. It stings. Still tingles."


He shook the new limb a bit and looked back at it, obviously amazed. The other two boys had untangled their own wings and were trying to figure out how to position them comfortably.


Nicole shook her own wings a bit and tried various positions. No position felt quite 'right', but she eventually managed to get her wings into a position that didn't feel too bad. She had them pressed down almost to her sides before she bent the wing elbow up, sort've like she was pretending to be a T-Rex. Both of those segments were about the same length; a bit longer than her torso. The 'elbow' in this position was actually around her hips. At the end of the middle section of the wings was another joint and a long appendage almost as long as her regular regular arm. She found it to be very flexible; she could twist and move it around like her hand. In the end, she let the new appendages in that position, with the end of the wing hanging down, like a big N shape. It was a strange feeling, but it wasn't too uncomfortable. The extra weight of the wings and the muscles to support them in her chest did throw off her balance. She found herself leaning forward more just to try and balance it.


She peeked at the bushes and could see fleshy limbs above the bush, where Angela and Catherine were hiding. "You girls okay back there?"


"Yeah..." Catherine confirmed after a minute. "These feel so strange. My head hurts."


"Try not to think too much about them, let your subconscious sort things out. That's what the Titans suggested."


"I'm trying," Angela said. "But this is so weird!"


Nicole eyed the radio next to her, wondering if Andrew would do another status check. She wiggled her fingers and shook her hands, shaking out the last of the tingling feeling. Without realizing it, she began to wiggle her jaw, a subtle ache developing there. She licked her lips and paused, realizing something was off. She licked her lips again and probed the inside of her mouth with her tongue. She discovered what was wrong; her teeth were disappearing. Like her hair, they seemed to be getting smaller, pulling back into her gums.


The headaches returned, this time more in the form of a pressure, the worst sinus headache she'd ever felt in her life. She grunted a bit in pain, her jaw aching as it began to swell larger, pushing forward. Her nose and sinuses throbbed in pain more as her skull was reshaped by strange forces. She could just see her nose pushing forward, her lips stretching around the growing bones. She went crosseyed and could see the skin of her lips changing colour, darkening towards a dusty black. The skin was obviously hardening, developing a shine as it looked more like a beak.


Her ears seemed to clog up a bit, making the noises around her a bit muffled. Worriedly, she looked around, and caught sight of the boys. Like her face, they had beaks growing from their mouths, reshaping their nose and lips and jaws. She could more clearly see what was probably happening to her own face. While their beaks had different colours, they were all similarly shaped, resembling the beak of a bird of prey, complete with a hook on the end.


She could also more clearly see what was going on with the rest of their heads. Their foreheads were shrinking a bit, but their skulls still seemed big enough for their minds. Their ears were growing larger, perking up like triangles, resembling cat ears more oriented near the top of their heads. From the far end of the clearing, Tony let out a grunt, and three pairs of ears twitched towards the noise. Nicole felt her own ears twitch reflexively towards the noise as well.


She carefully explored her growing beak with her tongue, feeling the edges of her new mouth opening. Her vision began to blur a bit, making her clench her eyes shut, worried about what would happen next. She could feel the strange pressure on her eyeballs as something was happening, invisible to her. The muscles of her face seemed to twitch randomly as they did something around her orbs.


When the feelings seemed to settle down and stop, she tentatively opened her eyes. Her vision was blurred and not focused, still looking at the other three boys with their bird-like heads. She blinked a few times and they started to come into focus, but something still seemed off. Even though her eyes were already open, she mentally opened her eyes again and felt a twitch of muscles pulling something else back. Her vision cleared up a little more.


In the direction she was facing, the three boys were also blinking rapidly, looking around and trying to clear their vision. She squinted a bit and focused on Jeremy, and was surprised to see him 'jump' in clarity, the rest of her peripheral vision getting fuzzy. His eyes seemed larger than she remembered, with very large pupils and an orange ring that filled the rest of the eye, leaving little room for any whiteness. As she watched, he blinked, a thin lid flickering across the eye from front to back. She relaxed her gaze and the wider world snapped back into focus.


She looked away from the three boys, taking in the forest. It looked mostly like it did before, but the colours seemed a bit off. She noticed more blues and purples that she hadn't noticed before, with random shiny spots that she knew hadn't been there before. She caught a bit of movement and focused on it, a squirrel jumping into view as if it was right in front of her.


"Wow," she tried to say, but it only came out as a squawk. Her panic levels rose as she realized how hard speaking would be now. Only the artificial limits the change was keeping in her mind kept it from being crippling.


She relaxed her focus on the squirrel and grunted again. "Ewwo? Can you hear me? Can you understand me?" she tried to say, the words sounding somewhat normal to her, but still strange, like it was harder to enunciate than she was used to.


"Iss Karres? I can't smeak," Tony called out.


Nicole looked that way, zooming in and seeing his golden beaked face looking through the bushes. It was like she was right next to him.


"We can speak." she said slowly. "We need to practice. Everyone, repeat after me.... In Flanders fields the poppies blow." The Remembrance Day poem was the first thing that came to mind.


Around her the other kids perked up and looked at her. She could almost feel their gazes locking on her. Slowly they began to speak, obviously nervous about how they were speaking.


"In Flanders fields, the poppies blow."


Her ears flicked and she turned her head, easily able to pick up each voice and tell where it came from, when it started and when it stopped. "Between the crosses, row on row."


"Between the crosses, row on row." She nodded encouragingly. Some of the sounds were harder to make, but forcing them into a familiar rhythm seemed to help her and the kids to make them without thinking too hard on how to make the sounds.


She went through the rest of the poem and relaxed by the time she got to the end. Speaking was still possible. She didn't know how her voice sounded, but everyone else's voices seemed off, the girls pitched a little lower, the boys pitched a bit higher, making them sound somewhat similar.


Pakowki

Mike looked around the field slowly, zooming in occasionally as he got used to his new eyes. The people around the field looked strange now, partly furred bodies with bare birdlike heads. His ears twitched as he half listened to people practicing speaking. The day so far had been rough, and he had no idea how much longer they had. It felt like the worst might be done, but no one knew anything.


"Coach Griffith? How much more will there be?" someone asked from the bench.


He looked over and didn't recognize the player at first. Finally he remembered Cynthia had been sitting there and hoped she hadn't moved.


"I don't know, Cynthia. I hope the worst is over, but there is still more to go," he said. He was careful to look above her head as much as possible. Out of necessity, everyone had taken off their shirts early on. He had no idea what would happen later, but he wanted to make sure he could say he acted as best as he could.


He looked over the rest of the team. Some had family they had joined but most just had their teammates. He tried to place names to the new faces. "How's everyone doing? I know it's strange but is anyone having any problems?" he asked.


There was a chorus of 'no's' from the students and a few of the others who were in earshot. A few unchanged teens were wandering the crowd, looking shell shocked but trying to help where they could, but mostly everyone had to handle it themselves. It was hot day, and he knew they should be dehydrated and overheating, but he felt well enough as it was. Which was good; he had no idea how they would drink now.


News was slowly trickling in. Phones regularly rang but no one could really answer them. The unchanged did take messages and shared news as it was discovered. The extent of the change was taking shape. For the teams from Medicine Hat, they were happy their city had escaped the event, but it added an extra worry about how they would adjust when they could get home.


Ears and then heads turned towards the parking lot as people picked up the roar of a car engine. Since the change had started, the roads had mostly been silent, but not entirely. News of a quarantine had spread quickly, but the authorities were moving slowly. Not to mention there were enough backroads in the region that anyone vaguely familiar could slip through. So every hour or so since the change started, there tended to be a few new arrivals, usually bringing parents or family from outside the change region to check up on people.


The tires screeched as a car took the corner faster than it should. The driver skidded to a stop beside the field, and a woman jumped out.


"Judy? Where are you Judy?" she shouted, looking around frantically. She paused as she finally saw what the changed looked like. "Oh my god...."


The driver got out and hugged the woman. "It's okay. It's going to be okay," he said softly. With their new ears, it was surprisingly easy to hear him.


"Mom! Dad! I'm over here!" one of his students called out. Mike finally placed the parents, and who Judy was. The player raised her new wing to get attention.


The new arrivals finally noticed her and gasped again. The mother hesitated a moment, and Judy's ears drooped a bit, fear showing on her face.


"I'm here," Judy repeated. "It's me." She crossed her arms over her chest self consciously after a moment.


The parents stared a moment longer then started climbing the little hill up to the field. "Are you okay Judy? Can you move?" the father asked.


"Barely. I feel really strange. My balance is way off," she said.


They reached her and paused a few steps away. "Well, don't worry, we're here now. We can get you home, figure out how to stop this," the mother said. "Let's get you down to the car...."


"That's not a good idea," Mike called out, not wanting to interrupt but it felt like a good thing. "Taking her home won't stop the change and may cause harm if she's crammed in that little car."


"Stay out of this, it's our daughter!" the man countered.


"It's Coach Griffith. If anyone knows anything about this type of thing it's him," Judy countered.


"I don't care who he is. We have to get you home, then we can work on getting you better," the mother said.


"That's not a good idea. Some Titans left their area right after it triggered, and they still changed fully. Taking her home now won't stop anything, and will be really rough," Mike said.


The father reached out and ended up touching her new wing. He let go in surprise, as Judy twitched it away instinctively. She glared at him, her feline ears flattening.


"I'm staying, at least until this is done," Judy said.


"But..." her mother started to say.


Mike squirmed a bit and could see others were twitching uncomfortably as well. He could see goose bumps forming on his upper arms and realized their respite was coming to an end. "But nothing. It's still going on. Best thing you can do is try to help. There are other unchanged folk in the school who are getting things ready, see if you can lend a hand while we're incapacitated,"


The parents hesitated, about to argue more. Judy touched her mom with her new wing. The mother twitched away as if she was burned. Judy winced as well at the reaction and pulled her new wing back. "Go mom. I know you want to help. The best thing you can do is help get things ready for when we're done. We haven't really eaten all day; I'm sure we'll be starved when it's done."


By now everyone was showing a fuzz as their downy feathers started growing in. Mike found it surprisingly relaxing to finally be covered.


"Please mom, dad. Just wait this out. We'll figure things out when its done," Judy begged again.


"Fine, we'll go see where we can help," her father said. "But as soon as we can, we're heading home."


They hesitated, clearly wanting to hug her but not wanting to touch her yet. Judy also hesitated, but was distracted at the fuzz of light feathers growing. Finally the pair turned and headed for the school where a couple of other unchanged were waiting to recruit them for help.

Spruce Coulee Camp

The radio cackled and Andrew came over the air. "That was rough. Can you hear me? Everyone still there? Over." he asked. He sounded different but recognizable, though he sounded a little stuffed up and higher pitched.


"Alpha here. We got through it," Sam said.


One by one, the chaperones chimed in. Nicole listened, waiting for her chance. It was clear that they all sounded a little different but were still recognizable. She picked up the radio and held it near her beak. "Zeta team. We're all good. Freaked out but good. Over."


She lowered the device, and went a bit cross eyed, paying more attention to her changed face. She reached up and touched the beak with her finger tips, being careful of her talons. It was strange to have such a big thing coming from her face, and to have it be a part of her. She licked the edges of her beak carefully, not quite sure what to make of it. She found her tongue seemed a bit longer and more flexible than she was used to. In part of her mind, she realized she would have to learn to eat and drink with it, but she pushed it to the side.


Nicole realized she'd been sitting for hours and her body was stiff. She cautiously stood up, bracing herself on the log that had been her seat for so long, her back to the boys. It was strange standing now, part of her mind wanting to try and get her heels down, but her body proving that to be impossible. Her jeans fit awkwardly, barely hanging onto her hips, the bare tail pushing down on the waistband from behind. She tried to straighten up, and while she found it possible, she discovered she was most comfortable with a slight forward lean that put her wings over her centre of mass. It also made her breasts hang a little, not uncomfortably, but just differently.


"I... I think... I hope the worst is over," she said. She looked around to take in all the kids. "It's not done yet, but... but I don't know." She gave up, at a loss for what to say. She idly scratched at the skin of her upper arm, then abruptly stopped when she realized what she was doing.


Instead, she looked closer and noticed the skin was covered in goosebumps. As she watched, thick waxy hair began to grow out. The waxy substance dried and flaked off, letting the hair split apart into downy feathers. She ran her talons through the thick down, feeling the soft texture and investigating the whitish feathers against her tawny fur. She twisted around a bit and confirmed that the down had spread over the unfurred parts of her body.


Before she could really come to terms with it, she noticed more hairs growing up through the down. They were thicker than the feathers, and as the waxy covering broke apart, the hairs split open into flat feathers, more similar to what she was used to seeing on birds. These ones seemed to have a bit more colour to them, with a lot of brown and black shades in them. They grew out steadily covering the down in a protective layer.


She slipped her talon under one of them and could feel the slight tug of the feather on her skin. It was a strange feeling, like all the other sensations she was feeling now. She quickly pulled her talon clear, not sure what to do with the feathers exactly, and tried to smooth it back in place.


While she was examining the feathers on her sides and arms, she unconsciously spread her wings. The largest feathers started growing out on the wings, the vanes flaring from the shaft even as they grew out. When Nicole finally noticed them, her wings were no longer naked, but covered in dark brown and black feathers like her back. She spread her wings, not thinking about how she did it, and shook them a bit, seeing the feathers twitch and settle into place. The wing feathers were larger and stiffer, providing a bit of resistance as she moved her wings. They mainly grew out from the bottom of her wing-arms. At the very end of her wings they seemed to spread out a bit, though as she flexed that part, she could see them clump and spread. With a wing partly extended, she reached out and touched them, feeling the surface they formed, soft, but surprisingly solid. She pulled her wings back in, shaking them a bit to get the feathers to lay comfortably against her side, the wing itself in the folded position she'd discovered earlier. With her wings in place she stretched and rotated her arms, discovering her arm mobility was mostly intact.


Finally, the last set of feathers began to grow, long vanes growing from the stubby tail she'd almost forgotten about. The feathers themselves were quite long and stiff, reaching the ground if she tried to stand fully upright, but hovering just above the ground when she was standing in what felt like a natural position. The weight of them was noticeable but not too bad. She lowered one wing and looked behind her to better examine the tail. She wiggled the tail, lifting it up and squeezing it, seeing the feathers bunch together, then spread apart, as well as lift up and down and move from side to side. She had no idea what it all meant, but it felt useful. The motions she'd made earlier made a bit more sense now.


"Miss Karnes... Do you think it's over?" Tony called out from the bushes.


She shrugged her wings and did a quick self inspection. "I don't know... I think it is," she said. "Take a few minutes, relax. Maybe try walking so you get used to what you are now. It's been a long day, and we still have to get back to the camp."


She took a few more steps, careful to keep facing away from the boys. The feathered wings and tail were heavy and awkward, but her body seemed to balance them well enough when she didn't think about it. She experimentally spread her wings and shook them a bit, careful not to swing them too hard. Even with the little shakes, she could feel them catching the air, trying to pull her forward, or upwards.


"Maybe start picking up your stuff. We'll have to carry it back with us," she called out, glancing back to the trio that had stayed in the open with her. "Angela, Catherine, we should figure out how to put our tops back-"


The words died in her beak as she noticed Jeremy rubbing at his chest. He'd grown dark black feathers all over, looking similar to a raven or a crow, but his chest was furred like an orange cat. The fur and the rubbing did little to hide the dark swollen nipples on his chest. Nipples that were growing mounds under them. She tilted her head and noticed Ryan and Craig had similar issues.


"Shit... How did I forget that?" she mumbled. The strangeness of Titan sexuality was well known, but she had figured that wouldn't be a factor for them when it became obvious they weren't becoming Titans. Clearly the force changing them had other things in mind.


"Stay calm boys... It... It's not quite done yet," she said. It was hard to read their bird faces, but they were clearly confused and worried.


She did a subtle check at her own body, and figured her breasts hadn't changed much; they were furry now, maybe a little smaller, but they were still there. The boys' attention had shifted to their bellies now. They were clearly experiencing some discomfort as something happened out of sight. At the same time, Nicole felt a new feeling of her own.


Her pulse quickened a bit and a wave of arousal washed over her, focusing on her loins. She gasped a bit and closed her eyes, trying to control it. It concentrated on her clitoris, and she felt it swell with excitement despite not touching it. The feelings kept getting stronger despite her attempts to resist, and she began to realize something was rubbing in her panties. She also realized there was a bit of a dualness to the feelings, her more familiar aroused clitoris and something new that was growing. Reluctantly she looked down and through her unzipped jeans, she could tell there was something in the front of her panties.


She had a suspicious idea of what it was, but she had to see to be sure. She glanced around quickly to make sure no one was in front of her, and she pulled at her panties, letting her jeans slide down a little. She froze in shock, part of her knowing what she was seeing, but most of her not believing it was part of her. She had a penis.


It was semi erect, swelling out of a furred sheath just above her vagina. There was no sign of a scrotum or balls, but its purpose was obvious. It was red, with a pointier head than she was used to, and strange bumps down its length. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, not wanting to deal with it just yet. She tugged her panties back up and winced at the feelings of the cotton cloth on her sensitive shaft.


"Hands up!" she called out, glancing around. It was obvious the boys had noticed something else about their bodies, but she didn't want to be dealing with that aspect just yet. "I know you've all got something new. Just leave it alone.We've got more important things to do."


The trio near her guiltily raised their hands in the air, their wings lifting a bit as well. She heard sudden movement in the bushes where the others were hiding, and saw more talons lifting up.


"Okay. That was unexpected... but not surprising. I really hope that's the last surprise. I know it all feels really strange and in some ways quite nice, but we don't have time for any exploration right now. So pull your pants back on and get your tops on as best you can. We'll give it a few more minutes to settle down and to make sure nothing else happens, and then we'll head home."


Now that things really seemed to be done, Nicole felt the pressure seemed to be easing, and exhaustion was beginning to set in. The terror and anger may have been capped, but the effect they had on her body still seemed to apply, even if it wasn't the same one she'd started the day with.


She let the teens start sorting themselves out while she tended to herself. She looked down at her jeans and pulled them back up so they were tight under her tail. It was uncomfortable but it covered her. She stared at her talons and decided buttoning them again would be a lost cause. Instead she fumbled at the zipper and managed to pull it up, hopefully high enough to keep them up. The pressure on her new sheath was a necessary discomfort.


She then grabbed her t-shirt and held it up. The neck looked too small, and she had no idea how it would fit with her wings, but she needed something over her chest. Reluctantly, she pulled it on, tilting her head up so her beak could get through the neckhole. She got her arms through and found the fit was somewhat close. The only problem was the back of the shirt. It hung up on her wings and kept the front from fully covering her chest. She tugged it down and gave up. Her breasts were covered, even if the shirt hugged them tighter than she was used to. It would have to do..


The walkie talkie crackled and Andrew gave an update. He sounded exhausted. "I think we're done... God, I hope we're done. Please be done. In any case, come on back, guys. We have to get dinner and figure out the next step."


The other groups spoke one by one, verifying they were done as far as they could tell, and they would be returning as soon as possible. They sounded as exhausted as Nicole felt. "Zeta group. We're at the fire station. Got a little bit more clean up to do but we'll be in as soon as possible. Over."


"Thanks everyone. Remember, take only pictures, leave only tracks. We don't know when we can head back out, so bring back our equipment. Over."


She picked up her shoes after tucking the socks into them and grabbed her belt. She checked on her charges. Tony had dressed and come out from his hiding spot, showing his fur and feathers off, some sort of hawk and spotted cat mix. The other three boys had put their pants back on but seemed reluctant to pull on their shirts Their breasts were obvious on their chests, even as she tried to avoid looking their way. Catherine and Angela joined them soon after; they'd pulled their shirts on. Catherine was self consciously tugging on her t-shirt trying to get it lower. They paused and stared at the trio of boys.


For the first time, Nicole could tell what sort of griffons they had become. The cat and bird parts seemed to be randomly mixed as far as breeds went. Jeremy's orange cat/raven appearance was the most distinctive. The rest of them seemed to be various hawks and eagles, but mixes of striped, solid and spotted cats.


"Boys, pull on your shirts. I know they don't fit well, but it's only proper and fair. We heard what Mr Karnes said. Let's gather up the fire kits and head back to the camp."


Nicole ended up doing most of the packing, stacking the buckets and filling them with the fire kits that had been prepared for the interrupted lessons. Angela helped as well, but the rest of the kids milled about, getting used to moving on their toes.


Nicole checked the time as she tossed her watch into the bucket she was using to carry most of the stuff. It was just after five in the evening. She clicked the radio. "Zeta team here. We're heading back to camp now. Should be there in ten or so. Over."


"Thanks dear. See you soon. Over," Andrew replied.


She tossed the walkie talkie into the bucket and waved her wing roughly in the direction of the coulee. "Come on, let's get going. It's been a hell of a long day. I'm exhausted, I'm hungry, and I'm not even sure how we can eat. Sooner we get back, the sooner we can figure it out. Not to mention the sooner you can figure out how to walk."



Etzikom

With their feathers grown in, people were feeling complete. For the first time in hours, they could get up and move around slowly, getting used to walking on their changed feet with the weight of their new wings and tails.


Brian surveyed his students, trying to match new looks to old names. The feathers were impressive. Most seemed to have earthy colours; black, brown, white and grey colours. But a significant number of griffons had other colours; reds, greens, blues and yellows, reminiscent of non-birds of prey like cardinals, parrots, blue jays and others.


Scott especially was enjoying his new form. Early on in the change he'd willingly pushed himself out of his chair and endured the change on the ground. Now that he was done, he had stood up for the first time in years. He had a mottled jaguar pattern and deep blue feathers.


"How are you doing?" Brian called over to the family.


"All things considered, I'm feeling great! I can walk... Look at me, I'm walking again!" Scott exclaimed, his giddiness proving to be infectious. Reading griffon expressions was difficult, but the ones around him seemed to hold their wings higher or otherwise had a happier stance.


Brian nodded and refocused on the team. He rubbed his furry chest with the back of his arm, feeling a deep itch there. As he looked around he noticed more and more were similarly rubbing their chests. It quickly became obvious that they weren't done yet.


He looked down past his beak and noticed his nipples were larger, perking out of the light fur on his chest. The flesh under them swelled slowly as he watched. His ears twitched as he heard others react to the change. He stayed quiet himself, confused at what it meant.


He cupped his new breasts carefully, feeling the scales on his palms rubbing the nipples. He shivered a little, finding them noticeably big, but not huge at least. He hoped they wouldn't get much bigger.


Suddenly, he felt his insides cramp up below his belly. He grunted and grabbed at his belly. Around him most of the guys seemed to be having similar pains.The feeling spread quickly downwards, new organs and muscles growing unseen in his guts. While he couldn't see what was going on, he had a sensation of his scrotum tightening up until the sensation changed. The spasms and cramps eased up, and he could sense new muscles he could somewhat control below, capable of squeezing. He dropped his hand down to the front of his pants and could tell his penis was still there.


He felt the urge to explore more, and quickly stamped down on it. Looking around, he noticed a lot of hands drifting downward hesitantly and decided to jump ahead of things. "Remember where you are!" he called out, jolting most of the new griffons back to reality. "I... I think it's done now. I hope it is. Let's gather our stuff up and get it down to the bus. I don't think we can ride the bus any more, but at least we can lock our gear up in there. Get dressed as best you can, and we'll figure out what to do from there."


Nearby, Crystal and Ryan were recovering. Crystal had rested against her mascot costume through most of the change. She now had a hawk upper half and a lion lower half.


"You think Mr Boyd is right? Is it over now?" she asked. She tugged at her shorts awkwardly, the new bulge obvious in them.


"I really hope so. Are you okay?" Ryan asked. He stood up and took a few cautious steps, getting used to his new paws, flaring his tail feathers.


Crystal rolled onto her side and pushed herself up carefully. "Yeah, that was just strange at the end. And these shorts don't really have room for all this. Are you okay? That last bit didn't look nice."


"It was rough. I've never had a cramp like that before."


"You've never had a rack like that before either." Crystal giggled a bit and looked at the mascot costume. "Guess I won't be wearing that any more. Can you give me a hand with this?"


"Sure, just a second." Ryan gathered up his own shoes and shirt. He looked at his chest and back at the shirt. He was tempted to leave it off, but finally decided to tug it on. It was way too tight around his chest and didn't really cover anything, but at least it was something.


She looked at him and her ears twitched. "Yeah, you look good, considering."


Ryan squirmed a bit, tail feathers twitching. "So do you, I guess. It's a lot to get used to."


He helped her gather the costume and joined the rest of the team heading towards the bus. In the end they recruited one of the remaining humans to actually load the bus as the griffons found their wings were too much to squeeze in.


They passed the mascot costume onto the bus, along with their shoes and other things they couldn't wear any more. Then they hung around the bus with their teammates, not sure what to do next. Their wings and tails always seemed to get in the way no matter how they held them.


"Maybe we should go-" Crystal started to say, only to be interrupted by Ryan's phone.


He reached for it and yelped as he stabbed his thigh with his new talons. The phone stopped ringing by the time he got it out of his pocket.


"It was mom... again," he said, seeing the notice on the screen. There were dozens of missed calls, along with hundreds of texts and Facebook messages showing on the screen. He tapped at the screen cautiously, and discovered he still had finger pads that worked on the screen at the ends of his fingers, just before his talons. It took him a couple of attempts to remember his passcode and get into the phone.


The couple moved around to the far side of the bus as he placed the call. It was answered almost immediately.


"Ryan? Is it you? Are you okay?" the panicked mother answered.


"Hi mom, it's me. I'm... I'm okay. Crystal's here too and she's fine too," Ryan said once she paused for a breath.


"Hi Mrs Griffith," Crystal called out.


"Thank god. I've been worried sick all day. They said we shouldn't try to call while it was happening, but I couldn't help myself. Have you heard from your father?"


"I did, very early on. Mr Boyd called him just after it started, when only our hands had changed," Ryan explained. "I haven't heard from him since, but he was changing too."


"I know. They worked out the limits pretty quickly. You two are deep in it."


They fell silent as they tried to cope with what happened. Ryan looked at the vehicles around him, and shook his wings. "I don't know how we're going to get home. We don't exactly fit in cars now. We couldn't even squeeze into the school bus to reload it."


"Don't worry about that yet. They're saying they're keeping you all in place for now. Probably for a week or so,"


"A week!" Crystal exclaimed. "What are we going to do for a week?"


"Learn our new bodies for one thing," Ryan pointed out. "Hopefully we can hook up with dad's group at least."


"Have you called your parents yet, Crystal?" Susan Griffith asked.


"No ma'am. I used up most of my charge on the way down and didn't think to try and get it charged while it was happening."


"I can give them a call, let them know you're okay. Can... can you send me some pictures? Let me know what you look like now?"


"Sure, just a second," Ryan said. He tapped on the phone and pointed it to Crystal who posed, spreading her wings a little. When he had her picture, he passed the phone to her and she took a few of him.


Finally they leaned close together, wings and shoulders pressing together for a selfie of them together. It was the first time they'd touched another griffon and the contact surprised them at first; fur and feathers just felt different from plain skin.


Ryan reclaimed his phone and sent the pictures. "Here you go.... Slowly"


"I assume every griffon in the area is probably on their phone now, or at least everyone with a relative," his mom said. "Oh wow. You're.... You're beautiful."


"You don't have to say that," Crystal said.


"Why not? It's the truth. You're different, but you aren't ugly or monstrous or anything. I can't wait to see you in person, or even on video."


"Maybe tomorrow, when the 'net's a bit more stable," Ryan said. "As is, I should find a charger for my phone too."


"I'll let you get going then. I'll call your parents, Crystal and let them know you're okay. And I'll try to call your father."


"Thank you, I appreciate it," Crystal said.


"Oh! One question, who's who? I think Ryan's the one with the darker fur? I think I recognize his shirt."


"Yeah, that's me now," Ryan confirmed.


"Quite the handsome cat-bird. Take care, you two; we'll be in touch. Love you."


"Love you mom. Bye."


Ryan hung up and carefully pocketed the phone. "That went well. It was good to hear from her."


"Yeah, something normal at least." Crystal stepped forward and carefully hugged him, arms slipping under his wings. She stepped back quickly. "Come on, I'm starved. Hopefully they've figured out something we can eat."


Spruce Coulee Camp

Nicole led the group along the stream towards the coulee. They stepped carefully, not used to walking in bare feet. The pads on their feet seemed more than durable enough to handle the gravel stream bed they were following, though the muddy sections were annoying as it soaked their foot fur.


"Watch your step. Try to avoid any sharp stuff," Nicole warned them as they walked. She glanced back constantly to make sure no one lagged behind. Despite the long day with no food, everyone was able to keep up. They were a subdued group of griffons, walking quietly for the most part.


By the time they reached the coulee, everyone was somewhat comfortable walking and had sorted out their wings. They paused once they got out of the woods to wash their feet and clear the mud off. It felt good.


While the teens cleaned up, Nicole looked to the far end of the lake. Her vision zoomed in, letting her see a couple dozen griffons milling about outside. She realized she had no idea who was who. A couple looked towards her and waved so she waved her wing back. Emir and Ricky were the only obvious people, the only humans left in their group. They seemed a bit shell shocked and lost among the furry-feathered people.


"It won't be long now. Let's go figure out who's who and get something to eat."


A short walk along the shore later, and they were back at the camp. Their approach had been spotted practically from the moment they got out of the woods. One osprey-lynx griffon rushed to greet them. She scanned the group, and locked onto Nicole, recognizing her clothing. Nicole watched it approach, not sure if it was male or female, or if that mattered for what they were now.


"Nicole!" Andrew called out, reaching her. She relaxed, recognizing her husband's voice. They embraced on the shore squeezing wings and feathers alike.


"I'm so scared," she whispered. "What the hell is going on?"


"So am I. But we're together now. That's a good thing."


They stood there for a long moment while the rest of her group made their way back to the camp. When they finally separated, she realized he wasn't wearing a shirt, showing his grey furred breasts to the world.


"You should have a shirt on now. You're as big as me now," she said, poking his breast with a talon. She blinked in surprise at what she did and looked around, thankful no one was paying them attention.


"I know I am. We all are now. But as you're clearly feeling, it's not exactly easy to cover up. Come on, we have some news."


They started walking up to the lodge. Nicole studied the group now that she could see them easier. About half of them seemed to be normal birds of prey. The other half were other types of birds. While everyone had the hooked bird of prey beak, there was one with the red and blue markings similar to a macaw. Another had the emerald head feathering of a mallard duck. And someone else had dark purple feathers of a species she couldn't recognize.


"How do you have news? The phone line is down and there's no service," she asked.


"I know, and that's true. But the radio works. There's one in the kitchen that can pick up stations from Parker and Hat."


"Is Hat?"


"Hat is safe. They were outside. Fort Parker on the other hand, was nearly dead center," he confirmed.


She winced and fell silent. She stood next to him as he hopped up on one of the benches to get people's attention.


Once the group quieted down and eyes turned his way he started. "Welcome back everyone. We made it. We're here, and we're in one piece. We also have some news. First to reassure you, Hat is safe. Hat was outside the area. But Elkwater was within as you might expect."


There was a rumble as people processed the news, a palpable sense of relief, but also a fresh sense of worry as the implications set in.


"I'll explain more in a moment. But since we all... sorry almost all of us, have new faces, I think fresh introductions are in order. I'm Mr Karnes, and this is Mrs Karnes obviously. Mr Arnold and Miss Davidson, please step over here."


Two more griffons stepped up to the front of the group. The purplish one turned out to be Sam Arnold, while Judy was some sort of eagle.


"Caleb and Danielle are there. Jim and Emily are there." The parents waved to identify themselves. Caleb and Danielle were clustered around their daughter and niece. Once Nicole realized who Jim and Emily were now, it was obvious who their kids were too.


"We'll have to do more introductions in a moment, but here's what we've heard. There's a radio in the lodge, and we can pick up stations from Hat and Fort Parker, so that's where I've learned what we know."


He paused to collect his thoughts. "Right, so this was a Titan event. Sounds like it was anchored on the border, between Alberta, Saskatchewan and Montana. It reached about a hundred klicks out from there, just like with the Titans.


"Estimates are, there are about a hundred thousand of us. Big places hit were Fort Parker and Havre Montana, Elkwater here and some smaller towns and villages. Over in Saskatchewan, Battle Creek was hit, along with Gavenlock, Loomis, Robsart, and part of Maple Creek." He paused and let out a nervous breath. "Here in Alberta, Elkwater was the biggest place hit, but Aden and Manyberries were hit.... As were Etzikom and Pakowki."


Nicole felt a chill go down her spine as the implications hit her. She didn't wish this on anyone else, but it did mean when they did get home, they wouldn't be alone.


"Why do those last two sound so familiar?" Jim asked.


"There's a big Southeastern High School soccer tourney going on this weekend, in Etzikom and Pakowki. That's why our group is a bit smaller than usual this year; the timing conflicted," Sam explained.


"We sent our senior boys and girls teams out. So did MHHS. There are probably fans and family out there too," Andrew added. "Paul's probably not sleeping a wink tonight."


He sighed and shook his head. "In any case, they're scrambling to figure out what to do about us. We're on our own tonight. Tomorrow... is tomorrow. We'll figure out what to do then. There seems to be talk about a quarantine, so chances are good we won't be going home tomorrow."


"So, for tonight, and for the rest of the camp, I remind you this is still a school trip, even if we are quarantined here. We expect you to be on your best behaviour. Dinner will be ready soon, and we'll probably have an early night. We're not sure if bunk beds are appropriate for our new forms, so we're opening up the other cabin for the girls. The guys already had 18 lower bunks, and Rick and Emir can go up top."


"Are we still technically girls and boys?" someone asked from the crowd.


"For the sake of our sanity, you are. This is still too new, too unknown, for us to do otherwise.


"Now, we're going to get dinner going shortly. Bottles of water are available on the table back there. Feel free to grab one. We'll eat, and we'll probably have an early bed time after that. It's been an exhausting day, and I think we just need some time to process this. Lights out will be at 10. If you want to go to bed before then, feel free. There will not be a wakeup call. Sleep as late as you feel you need." Andrew studied the crowd, thinking of what else to say.


"I know many of you have gotten your phones back. We don't have cell service of course, but don't think I haven't noticed the cameras clicking. We can't really control that too much, but please, keep your pictures tasteful."


"He's your teacher, so he has to be tactful about it," Jim chimed in. "Me, I'm a parent. I can be as tactless as I want. So if you have trouble reading between the lines, he means No Sexting. Keep everything in your pants and for God's sake don't take pictures of it, no matter what it is."


There was some embarrassed laughter and a few of the teens squirmed uncomfortably.


Andrew nodded to Jim. "Thank you Mr Anderson. I trust everything is perfectly clear?"


He looked around the crowd to make sure the point was clear.


"That's all I have for now. We'll just do a quick roll call and then you can go from there."


The roll call finally let Nicole reconnect names to new faces. She wasn't really surprised to discover that the macaw coloured griffon was the Brazilian exchange student, Patricia. Fittingly, she also had a jaguar rosetta patterned lower half. The remaining students seemed to have no pattern to what they became. She was a bit concerned by how many were going topless; about a third of the students were only in their pants, and it wasn't just the former boys. No one seemed to make an issue of it so she left it alone for now.


Nicole grabbed a bottle of water from the table, and followed Emily into the lodge to offer help with dinner. They gathered around the central island. Nicole twisted the top off the bottle and looked at it, not sure how to use it.


"Tilt your head back and dump it in basically, that's the easiest way. Aim near your cheeks if it helps," Emily suggested.


Nicole followed the advice. Some of the water dribbled into the feathers of her face, but most of it went into her mouth. She gulped it down and quickly drained the bottle, feeling a little better. She hadn't realized just how dehydrated she had become.


"Right. That's water dealt with. How about food? What the hell do we eat?"


"The radio said we seem to be able to eat anything we could before. Just be careful about it. I figured it would be best to keep it simple. Offer fruit mainly, along with the cold cuts and bread we were going to use for sandwiches for lunch. If anyone wants to make sandwiches they can try."


Nicole nodded in agreement. "That sounds like a good idea. I don't think I could make a bigger meal even if I wanted to."


The kitchen felt smaller than they were used to. The wings and tails kept getting in the way. They often found themselves reaching with a wing instead of a hand when their attention slipped. They loaded trays with the cold cuts, cheese slices, bread and basically all the snack food. While setting up the trays, she tried her own eating experiments. Grapes were interesting, able to be placed in her beak and then popped by pressing them to the roof of her mouth with her tongue. The sliced meat and cheeses, she found she could tear with her beak and pull in with her mouth. The biggest challenge was trying not to chew and to make sure the pieces were small enough to swallow directly. It made the food somewhat less flavourful. It helped that her tongue seemed a bit more flexible than she remembered, able to help pull food in and move it around in her mouth. All in all, it was a strange experience.


"Yeah, I think this was a good plan. Even sandwiches are probably beyond us at the moment," Nicole commented after trying to bite a slice of cheddar. Her beak had no problem cutting through the cheese, but she'd misjudged the size and it was too big to swallow forcing her to try and break it up more with her tongue.


"That's why I'm not putting out the apples. Oranges, bananas, grapes, those are all soft or small enough for us to eat in a bite. But the apples, we'd need to actually break chunks off and I don't think we want to deal with that yet," Emily explained.


"How are we looking for tomorrow?"


"Well, we were planning to leave tomorrow, so we have enough for breakfast. And since we missed lunch today, we should have something for lunch tomorrow. After that, I don't know."


"We'll talk it over with the others, and figure something out."


Dinner was a subdued affair. The trays were set out and people snacked from them as they wanted to. Mostly people mingled around the unlit fire pit, coming to terms with the situation in their own way. There were a lot of topics to consider, but no one really wanted to address them.


Pakowki

People were converging on the schools. During the change, it was mostly parents and families of changed students, rushing in as the news spread before barricades went up. By mid afternoon, the arrivals dwindled to a trickle. Once the change was done, a fresh wave of people arrived, These were representatives from the Red Cross, the military and other emergency responders.


Big trucks were pulling up outside the schools, beginning to unload cots, blankets, pillows and other supplies. It was obvious they were preparing for the new griffons to be staying put for a while.


Mike and Tammy were keeping busy. With the change complete, they were doing a headcount, making sure they knew who their students were now. A couple hadn't changed but most were different now. Tammy was tracking down the parents and friends who were there now, building up a cluster of folk from Medicine Hat.


Mike stood on the bench, taking a moment to compose himself. He looked across the field and across the next field, seeing the crowd sorting itself out there as well. He knew the other Medicine Hat team was playing over there at the Elementary School's field with three other teams. Without thinking much of it, he could 'squint' and the far off crowd jumped into focus, as if they were just a few meters away.


He faintly heard a crackle of a loudspeaker, and the far off group looked towards the elementary school. He twitched his ears to listen closer, hearing someone start speaking. He was almost deafened by a closer squawk, the PA system of the high school activating behind him.


We would like everyone to please report to the gym for an update and a briefing of what will happen next.


He winced and blinked, refocusing on the people around him. The team was looking expectantly towards him. "You heard them. Let's go inside and figure out what's next."


He glanced back across the field and realized the other group had probably received a similar message; they were heading into the school. He refocused locally and made sure his students were all moving. As they headed for the school, he looked around. There were probably a couple hundred griffons, and dozens of unchanged, mostly babies, kids and young teens. He figured half of them hadn't bothered trying to put shirts back on.


A few griffons and humans held the doors open to let the mob enter.Watching the griffons, Mike realized that they were shorter than normal, but seemed a bit wider due to their wings. Their stance seemed to be more horizontal than normal humans; they had a natural lean forward to keep their tail feathers lifted off the ground, and to put their wings more horizontal to their body.


He followed the crowd through the hall and into the gym. At the front was a group of humans and a few griffons that seemed to be in charge. A microphone had been set up.


"Everyone stay together. Head over there towards that corner," Mike called out, pointing towards the far corner of the gym. It was filling up fast, but groups did seem to be trying to stay together. There wasn't much chatter; everyone seemed to still be in shock from the event.


Soon after they claimed their corner, the last stragglers wandered in. The people at the front wrapped up their conversation and a woman stepped forward.


"Good evening everyone. I know you've been through a lot and you're wondering what will happen next. It's a good question, and one we're still figuring out. But we're here to help as best we can.


"My name is Alice McKay, from the Red Cross. We're here to help you through tonight and the days ahead."


She paused and looked over the room, not reacting to the strange people she saw in it. "As you obviously know, another Titan event has happened. It was centered at the border of Alberta, Montana and Saskatchewan, and extends about a hundred klicks. Around us, it's affecting the towns of Elkwater, Etzikom, Aden and Pakowki. Medicine Hat and Coutts were out of range."


The room erupted in mumbled conversations as the news sunk in. Mike knew some of that news already, but hearing it from an official source made it all the more real.


"What does that mean for us?" Tracy asked. "We're these things now, but our families aren't?"


Mike looked at his student. "I don't know. It'll be difficult, but we'll figure out something. For now, we just need to learn what we are now."


On the stage, Alice waited until the noise began to settle down. "I'm sure you all have many questions and we'll be available to answer them after. For now, I want to outline what's happening.


"First of all, I want you to know a quarantine is being set up around the region. We don't know how long it will be, but we want to keep all the affected people in the region for now. So you won't be able to go home right away.


"For locals, we'll help you get home as best we can. Getting in cars isn't really feasible, but we'll figure out something.


"For people from Elkwater, Etzikom, Aden and other areas within the Quarantine zone, we'll also try and get you home, but it probably won't be until tomorrow. For tonight, you should plan to stay here.


"For everyone else, I'm sorry, you probably won't go home until the quarantine lifts. At least by then we should have figured out a way to transport you."


The gym grew loud again as people shouted out questions. Alice held her hands up. "Please! Please! Please quiet down! We'll answer questions later."


It took a few minutes for the room to get quiet again.


"Thank you. So yeah, for tonight, we're setting up the school as an emergency shelter. Cots, blankets and pillows will be provided. We've also fired up the cafeteria, and dinner will be provided shortly. We're not sure what you can eat yet, but we'll get something in your bellies.


"You might remember that the Titans were taken offline during their change. You don't have to worry about that. The Net is staying up, the phone lines open and everything. Which also means the Press can reach you. Use your discretion when talking with them.


"The major phone companies like Bell and Rogers have already announced they're waiving long distance charges and data limits for this region. Check with your local carriers for details.


"If your phones are out of juice, charging stations will be set up somewhere, we'll let you know where when we figure it out. If you don't have charging cables, we have some available too for a variety of phones.


"The school's wifi information will be shared shortly as well, and a computer lab will be opened up so you can use the internet that way. We'll also set up some TV rooms in some of the classrooms so you can watch local news, or some kids programming for the young ones."


She paused for a moment and looked at her companions. "I know it's rough for all of you, and we're doing our best to help you out as best we can. Please be patient; we're all figuring things out at the same time. Now, any questions?"


An hour later, questions were done, but not really answered. Most headed for the cafeteria. Mike kept his team together while the gym emptied out. Some of the volunteers were already wheeling in cots, but gave them space.


"Right, you heard the news. We're going to be here for a while, probably a few days at least. I know we're all starving so I'll let you go get some food in a moment," Mike said addressing the team. "I'm going to try and get a section just for us, so we can stay together.


"Miss Stairs and I will be contacting the school to give them an update. The school will reach out to your parents. That said, if you have your own phones, you should call home and talk to your parents directly. If you don't have phones but want to call home, see me or Miss Stairs or one of the other adults, and we'll let you use our phones when we can. And if you just want someone to talk to, we're here for you as well."


He gave his team one last look. "Okay, go get something to eat everyone. Be sure to be back here before lights out, otherwise you can do what you want, within school grounds.”


Soon the two coaches were left by themselves in their corner of the gym. Mike sighed, finally relaxing for a moment. The weight of everything he had to do still rested heavily on his shoulders, but he finally had a moment to himself and his thoughts. Thoughts that immediately went to his family. He knew Ryan was affected but had no idea what was going on in the other town.


He jumped in surprise, feeling a hand on his arm. Tammy looked at him with a strange, unreadable face. Her body language was universal, she was obviously worried about him.


"We should call Paul, give him an update on the team, let him know the kids are fine," Mike said, feeling his responsibilities surging again.


"He can wait a little longer," Tammy suggested. "We need to look after ourselves first. That means getting something to eat, and calling home. You'll be in a better headspace then."


He nodded and carefully tugged his phone out of his pocket. The screen showed hundreds of missed messages and calls. "Not much juice left, but enough to call home. I'll have to charge it over dinner and then we'll call Paul."


Tammy nodded and patted his arm again. "Sounds like a plan. Come on, let's give them room to set up our beds for tonight."

Spruce Coulee Camp

The sun settled to the west, and it became apparent that night vision was not one of the perks of their new forms. They could still see as good as humans, but not being able to see better was a slight disappointment. Andrew decided that lighting a fire would be too dangerous given how unused to their new forms they were, so they made due by turning on all the lights they could.


"Mrs Karnes, could we speak?" Patricia found the teacher after dinner.


Nicole looked up at the Brazilian student, and then looked around. They were somewhat isolated. "What's on your mind?" she asked the parrot-jaguar.


"Home is. I'm worried. What will happen to me? I'm supposed to leave around Christmas."


Nicole sighed and shook her head. "I don't know. Not yet. That might be something you'll have to decide later. For now, just get used to all this. And one way or another, we'll look after you, and the other exchange students."


"Will I have to leave? I don't think I could fit on a plane now." She shook her wings a bit. They were predominantly blue, but they had a band of yellow near her shoulder, and her main body feathers were red.Her feline part had orange and black rosettes on it, in a random pattern.


"I don't know. It's too soon to tell. The Americans are still sorting it out with the foreign Titans, and now Canada will have to figure it out with you guys. Once we get home and can contact your parents we'll start looking at your options."


Her body language showed she wasn't satisfied with the answer, but they both knew it was the only one they had available. "Thank you, Mrs Karnes."


"It's getting late and we're all exhausted. You should get ready for bed and figure out how to sleep. You're moving to the third cabin right?"


"Yes, Ma'am. I've already moved my stuff over."


"Well, try to have a good night then. I'm sure things will be better in the morning."


She nodded and left to rejoin Mai and some of the other girls. Nicole waved to them and looked around. Some of the teens had already retired to the cabins and everyone else looked exhausted. She caught Andrew's attention and pointed to the cabins. He did his own assessment and reached a similar conclusion.


"All right everyone. I know it's still early, but it's obvious we're all exhausted. So let's wrap things up out here and get back to your cabins. We'll have lights out at 10, so you have a little over an hour to get ready for bed and to sort out anything you want to sort out."


There was surprisingly little grumbling as the teenaged griffons retired to their cabins. The teachers did a quick bed check to make sure everyone was in the right spot. Most were sitting on the lower bunks, chatting. Some were already laying down either face down or on their sides, facing the wall so their wings and tail feathers hung off the side of the bed.


When the teachers returned to the lodge, they found the parents relaxing in the main area, looking as exhausted as the kids were. They were sitting on the floor around the unlit fireplace. Caleb and Danielle were leaning against each other, wings pressed together. Emily and Jim were seated separately near the couple. Andrew went to get some water bottles while the teachers joined them, completing the circle on the floor.


"The kids are all settling down. Surprisingly, they seem too tired to be curious. No one was in the bathroom, or even changing their clothes as far as we could tell. We'll do another check soon and kill the lights," Andrew said. "How are you all holding up?"


"Holding on by a thin thread. I'm scared about the future," Danielle acknowledged. "But we need to stay strong for the kids."


The others nodded. "Can you still feel THEM in your head?" Emily asked.


Nicole tilted her head. Now that they had a chance to breathe and relax, the differences were more apparent. That no one blinked any more was disconcerting. She could catch a glimpse of the inner lids flicking across the eyes of the others, but none of the full eye closure that she'd never really noticed before until it was gone.


"What do you mean by Them?" Judy asked.


"You know, the ones who did this to us. The ones that kept our fear and anger contained. I... I can still feel it. Not as strong but when things start getting too much, when I start thinking.... Well it loses some of its impact."


The group fell silent for a moment, understanding what Emily was getting at, but not really wanting to acknowledge it.


"We should... we should make some plans for tomorrow. We only have enough food for breakfast and lunch really. So we'll have to go to Elkwater, and hope the stores are open." Nicole said.


Sam nodded, "Elkwater's about 10 klicks from here. Half of it on gravel roads. Since we can't drive we'll have to walk it. Walking it barefoot... bare pawed?... isn't that appealing, but some of us will have to do it to get some supplies."


They winced but nodded. "We'll figure it out tomorrow, once we have a better idea of what we need. Our new feet seem quite durable at least so far," Andrew noted.


"At the very least, we'll want to walk close enough to get a cell signal. Just getting to the paved road might be far enough," Nicole said. "Then we can call Paul and start getting word out that we're okay. I'm sure they're worried sick about us."


They fell silent a little before Caleb spoke up. He shook his wings. "It would be a hell of a lot easier if these worked. Think we should try it?"


"I doubt they would," Sam said. "The physics are all wrong for it."


"But why give them to us if not to fly with?" Danielle said.


"Let's shelve that for now. Our minds and bodies are literally too screwed up now to think straight. Get some rest and maybe things will be clearer in the morning," Andrew said to diffuse the situation. "Let's go turn off the lights. Most of them were already out when we were by earlier, I suspect the rest will be asleep now."


Everyone got up and went their separate ways. The parents went to their bedrooms, while the teachers grabbed the flashlights and went to do another cabin check. Sam and Andrew went to the first boys cabin and paused outside the door. Their ears twitched as they listened carefully.


"I'm not used to hearing so much. But I think they're all asleep," Sam whispered.


Andrew nodded in agreement and opened the cabin door. Peeking inside, they saw six figures motionless on the lower bunks. Most were on their sides, facing the wall with their wings hanging off the side of the bed. Two were laying on their fronts, one wing resting against the wall, the other hanging out like their cabinmates. Andrew flashed his light over them and there wasn't even a twitch; they were all deeply asleep, their eyes covered with their outer eyelids. The eyelids twitched like someone deep in dreamland. He flicked the switch to turn off the cabin lights, leaving just the nightlight near the door, and shut it quietly.


The next cabin they paused on its porch and listened again. This time they could hear a slightly different breathing pattern from within. When Sam opened the door, Ricky and Imir were laying on their top bunks, still awake. The changed boys were all asleep on the bunks below them.


"How are you two doing?" Sam whispered.


"We're okay," Ricky said, putting his phone down. He'd been playing a game on it. Across the aisle from him, Emir set his journal down and sat up, legs dangling off the edge of the bed.


"Are you sure? It's been a rough day, and we probably didn't check on you two as much as we should have," Sam said.


"We are good," Emir said. "You deal with a lot more."


"It doesn't mean we should have ignored you. You weren't directly affected, but witnessing this had to have been traumatizing. If you need to talk it out a bit, we're here for you," Andrew said.


"I good. Maybe tomorrow." Emir said.


Ricky nodded as well. "Yeah, seeing you guys change like that. It was scary, terrifying even. But it never seemed quite so bad. Well, not like that. I mean the terror, it was there, but I felt blocked off from it somehow, even though I wasn't changing. It's hard to explain."


"No, we especially know just what you mean. We all experienced that. Maybe we're still experiencing it. Probably a sign that this affected you as much as the rest of us, even if you weren't changed," Sam said.


"Fuck, aint that a fun thought." Ricky froze and lowered his head. "Sorry."


"It's okay. We're all thinking the same even if we didn't say as much. Let's hope a good night's sleep will help clear our minds a bit and settle us down. Do you two need more time? Technically it's not lights out yet, but...."


"I'm good," Emir said, closing his journal and stuffing it in the bag hanging off the bed post.


"Yeah, I'm good too," Ricky said, laying back down and pulling up his blanket. He tucked his phone under his pillow.


Sam glanced around the room one last time, making sure the bathroom lights were off. The rest of the boys were deep in sleep; they'd never even twitched a wing at the conversation going on around them. He realized most hadn't bothered with sheets, but they'd at least kept their underwear on.


"Night guys. Sleep well," Sam said, flicking the switch.


"Night Mr Arnold," the human boys replied from the darkness.


The third cabin was as quiet as the first one. They did a quick check and turned off the lights before heading back to the Lodge. Judy and Nicole were waiting for them.


"Girls are all asleep. I doubt a train rolling by would wake them," Nicole said.


"Yeah, I know the feeling. I'm half dead on my paws as is," Sam said. "Boys are all asleep too. Well Rick and Emir were still up, but they were fine to go to sleep now. We should try to pay more attention to them tomorrow; I think they were affected by this too, even if they weren't changed."


"There's a lot we should do. It's been a rough day, we probably forgot a lot of things we should have done, and done a lot of things we shouldn't have. So let's hit the sack and hope our heads are clearer in the morning," Judy said. She led the group into the lodge and turned to the hallway with the single rooms. "Night guys."


Nicole paused at the bathroom while Andrew finished turning off the lights and checking the lodge. She didn't need to use the toilet, but she wanted to do something she'd been avoiding all day. She focused on the sink, turning on the water and running it over her changed hands. They were covered in thick dark scales that gave them a pebbly texture. She cranked the water temperature up as high as it would go, and found she could barely tell much difference; the water didn't seem particularly cold nor hot. She washed her hands and splashed the water on her beak. She could vaguely sense the wetness, but could only tell it was hot water when some drops landed on her tongue, or soaked into the feathers on her face.


Finally, she looked up, and an inhuman face with yellow-orange eyes that didn't blink looked back at her. The bird-head was largely covered in dark black feathers with white and brownish highlights. Its hooked beak was dark, black, but turned white at the base. Unlike a normal hawk's head, two furry rounded ears were set on her head, a bit higher on the head than normal human ears. They were lighter coloured from the front, and dark black on the back. She heard someone coming down the hall, and the ears twitched to focus on the noise.


Behind her, another griffon slipped into the bathroom, visible in the mirror behind the stranger. This one's head was almost white with a black band starting at the base of the beak and going over the eyes and down the back of the head. His ears were greyer and more triangular, with tufts of fur on their tips.


"I'm a freak. We're freaks," she said softly, the bird's beak moving slightly with her words.


"We are what we are. I still think you are beautiful whatever you look like."


She sighed and turned off the water. She felt Andrew squeeze her shoulders in a familiar way, though the hands doing the squeezing were alien. When he shifted a little lower to squeeze at the base of her wings she twitched in surprise.


"Come on, let's get to bed," Andrew said, tugging her gently by the wings. He let her go and backed out of the tight bathroom.


The bedroom didn't feel much bigger with most of the space taken up by the double bed. It had been a close fit for two before, now Nicole wondered how it would work. She slipped past Andrew to her normal side of the bed, while he closed the door behind him. "Caleb and Danielle are out like a light."


"Yeah, I'm almost asleep on my feet too. And you look just as tired." He started tugging at the shirt, grunting and squirming as he tried to get it off. She stood there, seeing his grey furred breasts swaying with his struggles. She shook her head and went around to help him.


"Here, let me, Then you can help me." she said.


"Thanks. I'm really not used to these things. They look better on you." He smirked, his ears twitching. He reached over and helped her out of her own shirt. It was a relief to have her feathers freed, though the fabric pulled on them the wrong way as she took it off.


"I don't know. Maybe I could get used to them... in time."


She turned away and unzipped her jeans, pulling them down for the first time all day. It was a relief to get them off, along with her panties. She stared at her crotch, seeing it for the first time. Her feline part was tawny coloured, like a cougar. Between her legs in front of her pussy, was something else, a furry tube with an opening at the end. She could just see a pinkish thing within it, seemingly asleep at the moment, but waiting for its time.


"That... That's another thing to get used to," Andrew said.


She turned back and saw he'd similarly stripped off his pants and underwear. She was familiar with his old equipment, but it was gone now; his penis in a grey furred sheath similar to the one she now had. His balls and scrotum had disappeared, pulled into a new opening she could just see a hint of below the sheath; an opening mostly hidden by the fur. She realized that unless you were looking closely, you probably wouldn't really notice either in passing.


"This is us now?" she asked, her feelings confused.


"Seems that way. Come on, let's go to bed." He tugged her towards the mattress.


"What about the PJs?" she asked.


"I think we can skip for a night this time. It's nice to be somewhat free now, and it's just us."


They moved to their usual sides of the bed. She laid down on her side, as close to the edge as she could get, letting her wings and tail hang off the side. Andrew turned off the lamp next to him and the room fell into darkness, lit only by a faint glow of the quarter moon through the window. She sensed more then saw him lay down facing her. They wiggled closer together in the darkness, until they were close enough to touch. It wasn't their usual sleeping position, but Nicole suspected it would be one they would have to get used to. She could feel a light touch of his breasts on hers, moving with his breathing.


"Good night my love," he whispered.


"Good night dear," she replied.


Preceded by:
None
Paradigm Shift: Griffons: School Daze Succeeded by:
School Daze: Day 2