Forget Me Not (Private)

[Lepa]

Miyo groaned.

It felt like she had been hit by a truck.

She twitched, trying to regain control of herself, but there was a harsh soreness that throbbed through her body. She tried to open her eyes, but her tired eyelids were heavy. So, the girl settled for a slight shift in her position, small blades of of grass flicking up at her movement. There was also something at her back... A tree? The girl gently turned her head, feeling the hardened bark scrape at her cheek as she did so. She winced. Yeah, definitely a tree.

As she turned her head back, she felt something squeeze around her arm. She flinched, her face contorting into a wince at the pressure.

A voice apologized.

^"S-Sorry."

There was someone else here. Miyo's senses must've been truly dulled if she couldn't have heard the breathing in front of her. Again, she struggled to open her eyes.

A wrinkled, pale face with sunken eyes loomed before her.

Miyo screamed.

"Kyaaaaaah!"

He screamed, too.

"Aaaaaaaah!"

Miyo flinched. "Why are you screaming?!"

"I-I don't know, you did it first!" he hastily yelled back. "S-Sorry!" He swiftly dropped her arm - he had been holding it. Miyo grimaced as the sudden movement irritated her pain.

"Don't touch me, y-you creep...!" She continued to yell in protest, defensively cradling her arm. She shut her eyes in spite of his apology. Miyo had only seen him for a second, but he was frightening, all wrapped in an ominous black cloak with his face like a ghoul's. "Leave m-me alone...!" She curled up, cowering.

"I was just...!" His frantic shouting trailed off into a deflated tone of quiet defeat. "Just... trying to help..."

"Help?!" She squeaked in disbelief. That's when she felt it - there was something wrapped around her arm. Miyo cracked open an eye, glancing downward. It had been dressed with bandaging, though the end trailed off sloppily - the scary man hadn't had a chance to finish when she screamed.

"...Oh..." Miyo frowned. How rude of her. Her shoulders dropped as a bit of tension left her body. "I'm..." She tried to glance up at him, but found herself unable to look him in the eye. She flinched at his appearance, looking away. "I-I'm... sorry..." She meekly apologized. She was still uneasy.

"It's... uh... It's okay." He insisted, though he seemed a little sad. "I'm... used to it."

Miyo couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt.

"...S-sorry again."

[Lepa]

"Um... Thank you, Izzack. I won't trouble you any longer."

"Huh? But..."

It had been three days since Miyo awoke face to face with the strange ghoul of a man. As it turned out, Izzack was his name and he was... much more nicer (and younger!) than he looked. He was a little clumsy and rather awkward, but Miyo trusted him. It was like there was a faint echo in the back of her head that told her "his heart's in the right place." She wasn't sure why she believed it, though the girl admittedly found herself blushing whenever she thought about it. She briefly wondered if Izzack himself was the cause of that reaction, but Miyo dismissed it, blaming it on her fatigue.

All she knew was that she was relieved that Izzack was the one to have discovered her.

The real mystery was how she ended up in the nasty condition that Izzack found her in. The girl recalled her anger and sorrow at Arturo, running off into the woods in grief, so she at least had an idea of how she got there, but... What had happened to her after that? According to him, she had wounds all over her body - fresh ones, healed ones, recently reopened ones...

But after two days, they all seemed to have rapidly healed at an astonishing rate.

And that's why Miyo felt it was her time to go. Izzack had allowed her to stay at his place in the city as she recovered. While she appreciated it, the place was old, decrepit, and... honestly, a little bit scary. Part of her wanting to leave was her fear of the building collapsing on her in her sleep, while the other part... well, Izzack didn't seem to have much for himself, living in conditions like this. He insisted he was okay, but... Miyo still couldn't help but feel bad. She worried a little about him. That's why she had to put on a happy face as she stood by the door.

"I'm okay. Really," the girl assured him with a forced a smile. Technically, it wasn't a lie; her wounds were gone, so she was fine physically. Mentally however, was a different story - there was a blanket of haziness that clouded her mind, but she figured she could just walk it off.

"I don't know..." Izzack was apprehensive. He didn't want to force the girl to stay if she didn't want to... but she didn't seem completely well enough, either. "Are, uh..." he began, but trailed off. Even though she offered a smile, she still looked rather tired. Maybe she had other reasons she needed to go, he thought. "Um... hmm..." he filled the silence in the air. "Well... if you say you're better, uh..." He scratched at the side of his neck in thought. "Um... I hope things go well?"

He didn't sound so certain, but it was all Miyo needed to hear.

"Y-yes, you too. Thank you."

[Lepa]

Miyo had only walked a block from Izzack's home when she was hit with an important realization.

"I.... I don't know how to get home from here...!"

Miyo panicked. She knew her address, but... she had no means of calling for help or paying fare to get there. She must've left her things in Arturo's car, or worse - she could've lost them in the forest! "Nooo..." she whined at the thought like a whimpering puppy. She couldn't just go back to Izzack, either - not after he had helped her so much. It would be rude to just... just...!

"Ugh..." The girl rubbed at her temple. She was suddenly lightheaded. "I don't..." She grimaced, stumbling aside. "...don't... feel so well..." Miyo exhaled, propping herself up against a brick wall. A jolt of pain shot through her chest. She yelped, clutching the area as she slowly sank to the ground. "O-ow..." Miyo couldn't help but shut her eyes. What was this pain...?

Only one thought crossed her mind.

^{"...Am I gonna die?"}

Miyo's body convulsed, as if to say: yes.

A strange sensation enveloped her soon after. It ended as quickly as it began. When the feeling subsided, the girl opened her eyes. She gasped.

"Why did get everything get bigger?!" She squeaked. Literally. Miyo could hear her thoughts, but her voice came out as tiny chirps and grunts. "O-or... did I get... smaller?" She tried to step forward, but stumbled, catching her fall with... tiny paws?

"W-What?!"

Clumsily, she stumbled around the alley she had escaped into, mustering whatever little strength she could to hold her balance. Only when she stopped short of dunking herself in a puddle did she manage to catch a glimpse of herself.

"I'm... a rabbit?!"

[Lepa]

Miyo repeated the fact to herself.

"I'm... a rabbit..."

And not just a rabbit, but... a weird, mutant one. She peered into the filthy puddle, straining to see the strange features that adorned her odd form. There were small horns perched upon her head, tiny fangs protruding from her mouth, awkward rabbit sized wings, and... one very fluffy squirrel tail.

"...S-Someone!" She squeaked in distress, clumsily rushing out of the alleyway. "Please! Help!" Miyo pleaded to passerbys. "I don't know what happened, but I'm a human girl, and-"

"Careful," a passing mother warned her young daughter. "Don't get close to it, honey. It looks like it might have rabies."

"What?!" Miyo leered at the woman, her long ears flattening back in frustration. "I just told you! I'm a girl! Like you!" She chirped angrily, her body language clearly annoyed. It didn't help that Miyo awkwardly swayed in place, still adjusting to being on all fours.

The daughter only laughed, amused with the small creature. "Mommy, look! It wants to play," she pointed, trying to pull away from her grip. Her mother thought otherwise, firmly tightening the hold on her daughter's hand. This animal had to be ill.

"No sweetheart, it's angry." She hurried along. "Let's go before it bites you."

"W-wait!" Miyo called out. "Nooo...!" She outstretched a paw, attempting to reach out, but all she did was flop over. "Oof..." Miyo rolled back over, sitting up. "Why didn't they listen to me...?" She frowned, ears drooping. "...W-What's happening...?" The small critter struggled back to her feet, shaking her head. "Maybe... M-Maybe I should go back to Izzack..." Miyo backed into the alleyway she had come out of, attempting to gather her bearings. "He might be able to help..." She thought as she backed up.
Suddenly, she felt something brush up against tail. Miyo froze as a shadow loomed over her. Slowly, she turned her head back. Her eyes found a furry leg. Miyo's sight followed it upwards to the head of the creature it belonged to. Her eyes widened in fear.

"Uwaaaaaaah!"

Miyo shrieked, dashing out of the alley. Whatever clumsiness of her new form instantly vanished as the adrenaline of fear shot through her body. She ran for her life, weaving through pedestrians in a panic, her eyes darting around in hopes of finding a hiding place. While Miyo was still herself, it was as if some primal instinct of her new form took over. Something snapped inside of her at the sight of what she saw, like alarm bells going off in her head telling her to get away from the threat as far as possible. And so, she did. That threat?

A stray dog.

Miyo glanced back at her pursuer. It was hot on her heels, barking loudly and repeatedly. It didn't even look hostile, as far as Miyo could tell. She never had a problem with dogs either, but... perhaps her new self saw something different. After all, it was much larger than her, towering over her small form... And it being a stray, meant... it had to eat things like her to survive, right?! There was no way she was about to let that happen!

"Help! Help!" Miyo squeaked frantically, running through a crosswalk. "Someone, please...!" She glanced back at the dog in fear. "Please! Someone...! Izzack...! Anyone...!" She cried out.

"Please help me...!"