Under the Lights

Lights crashed. Blinding. Bright. The electric wind-up signaled each of their bursts which briefly exposed faces floating in the dark.

A raised platform lay centered in the room, long and sleek. Glossy under the lights.

Silence.

And then voices. Pens scratching as explosions rocked the huge room.

Tanya crossed her right leg in front of her left, lifting her chin to look down upon the anonymous crowd. And then she walked. Strutting with exaggerated motions down the runway. Her dress flared out above her hips to show thin black panties that barely covered her hidden lips. A wide piece of velvet hung down her back like a bastardized cloak. The top she wore was stiff with an inverted V cut-out showing off of midriff and its mirror showing her pendulous, tanned breasts. Her nipples showed with each step in a mesmerizing alternating pattern.

The people murmured as she stalked down the lane, left hand on left hip, right raised to shoulder height.

At the end, she paused and almost smiled, displaying her superiority for all to see.

And turn.

Jesika was ten paces behind her, already walking her way and waving coquettishly at men and women on the sidelines.

Training prevented the snarl from reaching her lips. Tanya paused for an extra, over-indulgent second and then walked, passing within a calculated hair-width distance from Jesika. She reached the curtains.

And turn.

Chaos greeted her and her face dropped all pretenses, her flawless skin rising over her high cheekbones as she centered her fury on the beardless man shouting out directions in the middle of the room. Men and women yelled and cajoled and - yes, one girl was crying - as everyone changed their outfits and made ready for their turn.

"I don't have time-" he started to say as he caught sight of her.

Her slap wasn't strong but she had years of practice perfecting the proper way of striking to ensure it stung.

"How dare you!" Tanya screamed, her pouting lips drawn back to show tall, perfect white teeth. "You sent her out too early! You

know

you're to wait until I've returned and you

still

sent her out."

"Tanya," he tried to say, raising his hands.

She tore at her clothes and pins flung through the air as they fell apart, leaving her standing in her panties and heels and nothing more.

"Who do you think set this in motion for you, Stefan?" she screamed, coming closer to him.

"I-"

"Do you think anyone will pay for your shitty designs if my father spreads the word among his friends? If he smears your name in our circles? Do you think you'll be nothing more than a- a- dishwasher if I so much as whisper in his ear?!"

"Tanya, please," he begged.

The other models were frozen. Perfect statues in various states of disarray.

"I'm done," she said, her voice dropping to a disturbing calm. She regarded him with brilliant green eyes as he began to sweat.

"No, I-"

"Tomorrow you will feature me in ten outfits," she told him, watching his expressions. Noting the panic and pain that flashed in his eyes.

"That's almost half," he moaned, rubbing his hands together.

And turn.

She walked to her private changing room. Her heels cracked against the tile like the keys of a madman's typewriter.

"Where's Angelica?!" Stefan yelled behind her as she closed her door.

Tanya threw herself onto her couch with her arms spread over the back. A single lock of brilliant gold hair escaped her braids but she ignored it as she sat there, seething while replaying her walk in her mind.

She screamed and slapped the couch before drawing a deep breath.

Finally, she stood and began dressing herself, reaching for the red and black silk kimono she'd purchased earlier before the show. She paired it with black silk shorts that hung tightly against her boyish hips and showed the bottom curve of her ass cheeks. A red and gold belt completed the outfit and she tied it lightly, letting the kimono open to show her cleavage.

A door at the opposite end of the room opened.

"Ms. Javier," a gravelly voice said quietly. "Your car is ready."

The girl's dainty feet sunk into the rich carpeting as she walked to the floor. Light glittered from her toenails, fracturing off of the tiny diamond chips she'd had applied earlier in the morning. The door opened wider at her approach and her bodyguard stood to the side. Tanya slipped into her sandals before walking through the doorway.

She ignored him as she always did. The pair of them were shadows and nothing more.

A jet black BMW waited curbside before her, with her second bodyguard holding the door open. She noted the glass of wine before she gathered her kimono to sit inside, crossing her leg and lifting the glass to down it in one go. The door closed with a nearly silent thump and immediately pulled away.

Tanya poured more wine and sipped it before pushing a discrete button in the center console.

"I want to go shopping first," she said. "Amar's."

The car hummed with power yet she barely felt it change lanes. The outside world was dim through the tinted windows but she didn't care. Instead, she focused on the mirror before her, leaning forward to check her reflection for any flaws.

Satisfied, as always, with her appearance, she sat back to finish her drink, closing her eyes to rest until she felt the rumbling car grow quiet. The door opened to show both bodyguards standing ready. She swiveled and pushed herself out, pulling her sunglasses from a pocket at the back of the passenger seat.

"Clear it," she told her bodyguards as they made their way to a small clothing store.

The store's signage, simply named "Amar" after its owner, took up over half of the glass front. Tanya stood aside with her sunglasses resting against her pert nose, waiting and watching as women left the store. One of the two men held the giant brass door handle, pulling it open and waiting for her entry.

"Ah, Ms. Javier," the owner said, bowing minutely as she entered. He was short and balding with a gray beard but wearing an exceptionally tailored suit. "You honor me."

She ignored him as she did everyone else, instead walking through the nearly empty racks, touching the various outfits.

"Ms. Javier, if you please," the man said from the side of the store.

She frowned but looked up at him.

"I have an item that I've kept waiting for your return," he told her, gesturing toward an ornate wooden box. "Please."

It was unusual but she was interested. Amar sold a small number of items to select clients and even she knew that if he had something special that it

must

be unusual.

As she approached, he lifted the lid of the box and Tanya's plucked eyebrows rose. Resting upon a gold satin pillow lay a pair of viridescent thigh-high boots. She came closer to realize they were covered in tiny scales that appeared almost oily in their reflectiveness.

"And?" she asked, hiding her interest.

"They are truly unique," he told her. "It is well that your men asked everyone to leave as I wouldn't dare show these to prying, unworthy eyes."

She reached out to touch one of the boots. The scales were cool to the touch and almost metallic.

"Skinned from a reclusive beast," he told her, watching as she stroked the boots. "I paid an embarrassing amount for its remains. I made these with you in mind, as a gift for your continued patronage."

"A gift?" she asked.

She never paid for anything she "purchased" from Amar's store. He knew her payment was in exposure; the very fact that Tanya Javier wore his clothing would drive customers to his boutique. Nobody knew who he was until a famous actress wore one of his dresses to her movie's premiere. Since then, his name spread like wildfire and she helped stoke the flame.

"Yes," he nodded. "I would be honored if you wore them."

The larger of her bodyguards reached for the box but she reached for the boots first and stepped out of her pear-lined sandals. The guard knelt next to her and she lay the boots before her, resting a hand on the guard's shoulder as she thrust into the boot.

It was warm. The leather lining hugged her foot as she pushed, tugging gently without stopping her. She reached the bottom of the boot and flexed her foot, slipping it completely inside as Amar watched. He sighed as she placed her other foot into the remaining boot, wiggling her toes until the leather completely enveloped her. Her bodyguard retrieved her sandals and stood, following her to a nearby mirror.

They were a perfect fit, if a little tight. She turned and admired the contrast of the green in comparison to her black, red and gold outfit. From the side, she bent and her kimono raised to show her slim ass beneath her shorts. The tips of her toes tingled within the constraints of the toe box so she wriggled them to ensure they still had good circulation.

Deep inside the boot, diamond chips detached and fell away from her nails as they bent in half horizontally with a sudden, sharp crack that brought the long ends down into a curved claw over the tips of her toes. Slowly now, they pressed deeper into her nail beds. The skin atop her feet cracked, the skin drying in the instant before it broke in a wave that ended at her ankle.

Green showed beneath the ridges of the dead skin lining the top of her feet. Her toes swelled as the bones within grew dense and the nails dug into her flesh. The tops of her nails brushed the inside of her boots.

Tanya turned to nod at Amar.

"These will do," she told him, masking the thrill of the find. As she always did.

"Again," he told her as she turned to walk away. "It was my pleasure."

Her toenails began to lengthen inside the boot, the curve forcing them to bend further as the broad ends grew to sharp points. Her pinky toes cracked and pulled back, sliding against the side of her foot. Keratin flowed over the surface of her nails, dislodging the remaining pieces of diamonds as they finished growing into proper claws.

The inside of the boot brushed the top of her expanded foot, scraping skin away to reveal soft green scales. Emerald lines appeared at the edges of the cracked skin around her ankles. They spread slowly along her shin and around to her calf. As the lines progressed, her flesh grew desiccated.

The smaller of the bodyguards opened the door to her car and she slipped inside, once again crossing her legs. The boot lay against her bare thigh and she bounced it impatiently as she waited for the car to leave.

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

An odd coldness gripped her, spreading from her thighs and outward. She pressed the button to her side.

"Turn the heater up."

Pain lanced into her belly and she grunted. But, as she reached for her exposed stomach, the cramps subsided. Oviduct glands began to form as her body prepared her for laying eggs. She scratched at the raised mound above her pussy and hairs rubbed away. The itch persisted and she scratched harder, humming at the pleasure it brought to her. The hood over her clit folded, pushing down as her labia grew thin and her lips pressed together.

Her fingernails dug into the smooth patch of skin above her new slit. The skin stretched as bones within her hips pushed outward to make room for her body to produce a clutch of eggs. Nails tore flesh to reveal slick scales and her breath rushed out in a sensual, sibilant gasp.

Heat blasted her and she smiled for the first time that day, reveling in the feel of it against her body as it invigorated her.

A single green line snaked out of her left boot along her leg. It split, arcing left and right until it reached her kneecap. The skin surrounding the line grew thin and translucent, tanned skin fading to white and then to a faint mint color.

Tanya's tongue slipped between her lips and she hissed softly as her nails dug into the hardening scales above her sex.

The changes within her womb spread outward and she gasped as it rewrote her arousal and base desires. She rubbed her thighs together and opened her mouth. And then opened it further, the skin connecting her lips expanding as she slipped a hand between her legs to touch the slick juices lining the inside of her thighs. Blood rushed to her labia and they opened as her lips grew plump, stretching and breaking to show even smaller scales surrounding them.

When the car door opened, she snatched her hand away in surprise. She'd been too distracted to realize they'd stopped. Turning, she stepped out of the car and her thighs flexed. Ancient DNA awoke as the magic ran its course, telling her body what it

should

be and what it

always

should've been. Strong legs for hunting prey, not the sticks she had now. Hard lines appeared as her thigh muscles doubled and then tripled in size. Her ass swelled, straining the tiny shorts until they tore at the sides.

She needed something. There was an urge building within. She was restless. The street was too open. Images of her bed filled her mind. Blankets. A mountain of blankets with her beneath them. Her own little blanket den. She watched her bodyguards move along the sidewalk. Compared their sizes, wondering if the bigger one would make a better lover. Wondering which would win if they fought over her.

As they should do. To win mating rights with her.

Tanya shook her head and breathed out in a ragged sigh. She would call Geoff when she arrived home. Her arousal was getting to her head and she would need to blow off some steam. He could come over if her bodyguards let him through. If he could fight through her bodyguards and find her in her den and win her affection, she would let him, or whoever won-

"No," she said quietly, shaking her head once more.

A clear line of fluid seeped from her pussy, trailing down the scales still hidden by her torn shorts. It slid free of her clothing and down over dry skin that quickly tried to absorb it.

Her bodyguards opened the doors for her and she stared at them briefly. Hungrily. Her tongue flicked out to taste them on the air.

The others waited within the building with an array of lights. An army of makeup artists descended upon her but she hissed and pulled back. Her tongue slid out and wavered between short teeth with varying gaps between them. The tip of her tongue grew to two small points before she pulled it back.

"No, I don't need you today," she told them. Her tongue explored ceaselessly, writhing as the tips roamed over the ridged roof of her mouth and backs of her canines. It felt full inside of her shortened, still human jaws and she found herself incapable of keeping it completely inside. The fleshy, dual tips flicked out between pouting pink lips, scraping against teeth beginning to grow to curved fangs.

Tanya eyed the lights and eagerly walked over to stand before them to bask in their heat. She shook her head hard and her hair uncoiled to her shoulders. The curled ends of her golden hair bounced and brushed her neck as they slowly began to retreat into her scalp.

Invisible fingers reached into her spine, tugging and pulling and tickling, forcing her to bend over and grab the small stool at the center of the lights. Cameras clicked as the photographer's assistants began to film her. They assumed her positioning and the way she rotated her ass and waist while staring at the lights in ecstasy were part of her modeling routine. Both were eager to catch an unsolicited perfect shot to impress their boss. Her hips, wider now and showing pronounced curves, jumped as bones clicked and broke within.

Sharp spikes pierced her skin in a slow wave from the nape of her neck to her freed tailbone. The rose as her spine extended, stretching her skin. The beleaguered shorts tore as the sharp edges cut through it and they fell to the ground beneath her. The kimono pulled tight to the side of her body, exposing her breasts and shoulders. She pushed back against the stool and the short oriental dress wagged behind her as her tail began to expand.

Tanya trembled and opened her mouth to reveal a mouth full of short, curved fangs. The tip of her tongue split and she hissed in dual pleasure from the lights and the ongoing transformation reshaping her body.

Her fingers slid along the underside of the stool's seat as they lengthened and she felt her heels sliding inside the boots. She fell to her ass, crying out as her thick tail slammed into the ground beneath her.

The young model sat in the powerful lights with the kimono open to bare her upper body to every single onlooker. A buzz of concerned conversation filled the room and her bodyguard moved in her direction. Ignoring all of them, she pulled at her boots with fingers nearly twice as long as before and her feet slid free to expose brilliant green scales over eight thick, armored toes and two useless dewclaws on the sides of both feet.

Her bodyguard rushed to her with a shout and Tanya turned to him, eager to see the fight over mating privileges begin. Liquid pool beneath her, soaking her kimono as she spread her thighs to encourage her lovers. Skin flaked away at the movement to reveal scales growing beneath, soft and wet and new.

"The fuck?!" her bodyguard shouted, coming to a stop.

Tanya's cheekbones expanded, pushing at the skin surrounding them. She reached up, scratching her face and running her elongated fingers through her short, pixie haircut. Her nails were sliding forward over her fingers while curving into claws to match her toes. Ridges formed along her scalp as her face slowly pushed forward. Her nose flattened as her snout expanded and her nostrils drew back to two slits. She leaned on her kimono, exposing herself to the horrified gasp of onlookers.

"I don't care who it issss," she hissed, reaching a clawed hand down her chest to cup a full, heavy breast. "Jusssst someone come fuck me."

Her hand trailed down her belly to slip between her pussy. She grinned as her face continued to push forward, cracking and creaking. Translucent webbing spread from the corner of her widened mouth and she leaned back, opening her long jaw as she moaned in pleasure.

The girl brought her hand up, cutting away thin, sheer skin bloodlessly to reveal pale mint-colored scales lining her body, lighter than the scales at her side. She leaned back further and then onto her side before rolling to her hands and knees. The center of her massive tail matched the coloring along her torso. It was almost as wide as her hips but barely two feet long. Fresh scales grew from its base as it lengthened again and again. The tip curled ever so slightly as she exposed her pussy, the pink, glistening internal lips an odd contrast to the inhuman scales surrounding them.

"Call her father!" the larger bodyguard shouted. "Call Mr. Javier! Get them- get them out of here!"

"Dude, fuck this," the other bodyguard said. "Come on, Frank, man, come on! Fuck. This. Shit!"

She smiled, looking over her shoulder. Brown lines appeared in the brilliant blue of her irises. So, it would be the larger one, then. Whatever his name was. Frank. The other had said Frank. All that mattered right in this moment was he'd fill her and fertilize her eggs and help build her nest so-

But both men ran after the bigger of the two looked at her angular face and he bolted.

"No!" she hissed, her throat vibrating in a grumbling growl.

Tanya stood, shrugging completely out of her clothes. The bulge of spiked skin lining her back forced her to hunch forward. A voice whispered quietly, echoing throughout her head for her to drop to her stomach to crawl after them but she ignored it, swaying slightly on her splayed toes. Her tail brushed the back of her calves, the scales rasping as they brushed back and forth. It pulled against her as it continued to grow.

The heat from the powerful lights dried her remaining skin, curling away to reveal new lime-colored scutes. Her split tongue slithered out to flick up and down.