It was the first day of school, and Paul, Tracey, Caleb, and Kia were very excited. It was the first school year since their Fera Forms were revealed. They all knew that meant they started classes with Mr. Vaughn, about the history of the Fera Forms, how to control their Transformation, and most importantly, how to hide their true nature from the regular people.
Paul’s mother had already told him some of the history, which he was excitedly retelling his friends. Years and years ago, when the human race was first starting to evolve and leave behind the natural world and its deities, a small group banded together to preserve the Old Ways. They prayed not to God, Allah, Ganesh, or any of the other constructed beings, but to the sun and the earth, the sky and the water, the wind and the plants. They knew their fate was tied to the energy around them, they knew that their bounty and their bereft came from the natural world, not an invisible spirit on a different plane.
And so, in return for their attention and their favor, the earth gave this small group of people the Fera Form, the ability to transform themselves into other animals. The Fera Form was an indication of adulthood, of puberty, and was based on an individual’s growth (they didn’t mark maturity by something as arbitrary as counting human-made years). Some found their form as young as ten human-years old, while others were fourteen or even fifteen.
Just as the age of the first Transformation depended on the individual, so too did their Fera Form. The elders would often place bets about which animal each child’s Form would take, based on the personality of the child, what needs might arise in their life, and the balance of the group’s already established Fera Forms, but in the end, even the elders couldn’t always find a reason behind the change.
“Paul, we know all this,” Tracey sighed, rolling her eyes. “Everyone knows that part. What I really want to learn is how to turn halfway, to be between forms.” She flipped her hair, preening. Tracey had told them enough times about wanting to sprout her flamingo wings while staying human.
“I still think it’s interesting,” Kia said, bobbing her head a little as everyone looked at her. While Kia was small in her human form, she did manage to become a rather large rabbit in her Fera Form.
Caleb shrugged, looking slightly bored. He lounged across several desks, and repeatedly tried to push back his spikey hair. “Let the little guy talk,” he said, smirking at Paul. “I bet he’s overcompensating. I bet he has a puny Fera Form, even if his parents are the Earth Guides.” His high laugh betrayed his hyena Form.
Paul frowned. “My mom says that there aren’t any puny Forms, that each Fera Form is chosen for each person, for their strengths, or needs, or for what the group needs of them.”
“Whatever,” Caleb shrugged.
“Well, hang on,” Tracey said. “I want to know what his form is. He knows all of ours.”
Paul’s eyes flicked between his classmates, looking nervous.
“Hey, if he wants to hide it, that’s his business,” Caleb said dismissively. “It only proves that I’m right.”
“Come on, Paul, tell us,” Tracey whined.
Paul looked to Kia for backup, but she kept her eyes downcast.
He gulped, then whispered so quietly they couldn’t hear him.
“Speak up, Paul,” Caleb barked.
“I said I’m an ant.”
There was a moment where Paul thought they still hadn’t heard him, but then they burst out laughing. He felt his face go red, but held his head high. “You know,” he tried to speak over their howls, “ants are very powerful. They can carry up to 50 times their body weight, and they can build really elaborate nests, and… come on, guys, quit laughing…”
“S-sorry, Paul,” Tracey gasped. “It’s just-”
“The idea of the Earth Guides’ kid being an ant is just too hilarious for words,” Caleb finished, wiping a tear from his eye. “They are the most powerful people in our little band of freaks, and their kid is a freaking ant? That’s just too much.”
Paul said nothing. He felt his throat tighten, but he refused to be embarrassed of his Fera Form.
“You’ll see. One day, you’ll need my help, and I won’t give it to you.”
“Oh, sure,” Tracey giggled, “we’ll definitely need your help, like if we spill crumbs on the ground or something.”
Paul looked desperately to Kia for help, but still she remained silent. He wanted to be angry with her, but then again, she was just a bunny.
“Come on, Paul,” Caleb wheedled. “Show us your mighty ant Form.”
“Yeah, show us, Paul,” Tracey chimed in.
He shook his head. “You know we aren’t supposed to change Forms without supervision. I don’t want to get in trouble with Mr. Vaughn on my first day.”
“Maybe your Fera Form should have been a chicken,” Caleb mused.
Tracey flicked a pencil off her desk. “Oops,” she said, “I dropped my pencil. Paul, can you be a big strong ant and pick it up for me? Show us those muscles.” She collapsed against her seat, laughing.
“Fine,” he shouted. “You’ll see!” He closed his eyes, focusing on his Fera Form, his flesh, how he was put together. He felt himself rearranging, felt the world rise up around him, but he felt no shame. He was proud of his Form.
They watched, smirks on their faces, as Paul crawled from his seat, down to the floor. It took a while, and Tracey switched back and forth from watching him and picking at her nails. Just as he had reached the pencil, they heard footsteps coming down the hall.
“Paul, you better change back,” Caleb hissed. “Mr. Vaughn is coming.”
Before any of them had a chance to speak, Mr. Vaughn came bouncing into the room.
“Hello, kids, and welcome to the start of your new life!” he proclaimed, striding toward them with a grin on his face. There was a loud snapping sound. Mr. Vaughn glanced down, frowning. “Who left their pencil on the floor?”
They all gasped, eyes racking the floor. Caleb and Tracey sat mute, their faces slowly turning green.
“What?” Mr. Vaughn asked, confused by their grim expressions. “Was it a lucky pencil or something?”
“Mr. Vaughn,” Kia said slowly. “I think you just stepped on Paul.”
© The Lightning Tower, 2020