CW: 2nd person, CNC, lite identify fuzziness / memory fuckery, disorientation

You and your girlfriend had been together for years now; things had settled into their day to day rhythm, life was good. She was a low-level witch, doing research work with a distant coven, you were a clerk at a local shop. The routine worked, money wasn’t great but it wasn’t ever much of a concern. Still, you saw how much she had started to yearn for a change.

You’d see her reading more about distant parks to visit, usual sights to see.

So one day you asked her if she wanted a vacation. You had plenty of time off saved up, and witches regularly went on sabbaticals. It’d be fun to get away for a little bit, get some alone time in.

At first she didn’t seem as interested, but something lit up in her eyes. She asked what you thought of a year off; you laughed and told her you could never get that much time off of work. But she was insistent; if you could, would you just spend a year away with her?

So of course you told her you would, thinking little of it as she went back to her work. No doubt she’d end up scheduling a bit longer of a vacation. You could always justify it with the owner, you were sure. Life continued on, same as it had, with some small anticipation.

At first, the dreams began. The painted mountaintops, the dense undergrowth poking at you. The raw vividness of it was unusual, but they were just dreams, so you didn’t think much of it. Every morning you’d still wake up, next to her, though sometimes you could hear her murmuring something in her sleep, the same language she spoke her enchantments in. One morning you asked about it; she seemed confused at first, but told you they were wards, and not to worry.

Things began to pile up with each passing morning, though. Your vision had begun to blur; absent-mindedly, you thought to make an appointment with the doctor about it, change out your glasses. It had been a couple years, after all. At the same time, the house had begun to smell that much more; not bad, but you started picking out individual scents you hadn’t before. The smell of takeout from last night, the smell of clothes from the morning before that hadn’t been washed yet.

One morning, as you were wondering why traffic had become so much louder out your window, she walked by, cup of coffee in hand, reading some journal. But she seemed… different? Had her ears always been so pointed? Her eyes looked different too, in some way you couldn’t place. Then her scent hit you; full and rich and deep and warm and plentiful and 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙨….

You blinked, becoming aware again. She was looking at you curiously, your hands wrapped around her, your teeth bared from a low growl. She smiled and put a hand to your face, shushing you and telling you to wait just a bit longer. You didn’t know what she meant, so you did your best to not think too hard about it. She was a witch, after all, being enigmatic was her deal.

As you worked at the front counter of the store, idly staring out the window and wishing you could be running out through the streets instead of stuck inside, a customer came up to the desk. They were polite and warm, though you were distracted by just how strongly they smelled. Were people just not taking showers anymore? Why did everyone smell so… human like? Some part of your mind told you that they felt content. How could you smell contentedness? Maybe you really did need a vacation. You pushed those thoughts aside and checked them out, and they complimented your headband. Headband? You watched them go, confused, idly tracking them with an ear as they walked away. You weren’t wearing a handband. Maybe people were just being weird lately.

That night, your girlfriend treated the two of you to a night out; a good restaurant you two had gone to when your relationship was still fresh. The two of you tore through the menu, some part of your mind laughing at just how much she was eating. You had never seen her eat so much at once, but she finished two courses of meat without any trouble. Of course, so did you, but of course you had an appetite, who could resist that good of meat?

The next morning you woke, feeling restless in bed. You stood up, your girlfriend waking behind you, as you passed by the bedroom mirror. Maybe you’d just been sleeping on your tail too much… tail? Why was there a tail? Well, of course there was, it had always been there, hadn’t it? Yet some part of your mind told you it hadn’t. Why wouldn’t it have been though? Obviously you’d always been a cute lycan girl. Unless…

She came up behind you, some small amount of realization dawning as she began a final enchantment. Not that you cared much at that point: so close, her scent was overpowering, filling your head with nothing but thoughts of 𝙝𝙚𝙧. Distantly, you thought of the store: hopefully she had called ahead to let them know. You didn’t want to leave them not knowing what had happened…

When you awoke once more, she was there, curled up next to you. Soft rain pattered outside of the makeshift shelter, but inside, it was warm, and she was warm. You stood, uneasy at first, unfamiliar joints moving in new ways. You sniffed the air; fresh wood and rain and moss and dirt and 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦. The rising sun outside of the roof, the quickly-retreating stars ahead of it. Not the smell of a human to be had for miles.

She stirred, looking up at you from her makeshift nest with inquisitive eyes, and something that could maybe pass for a smile. Her thoughts filtered into your mind, warm and soft.

𝘓𝘦𝘵’𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳, 𝘩𝘶𝘩?

You laid down and curled back around her, giving her snout a quiet lick. Of course you would.