A Ruse of a Roo
You decide that maybe backtracking a little would be the wisest, at least until you can figure out what could be rustling about in the forest. Besides, you remind yourself you’re not some professional fighter or survivalist for that matter - you need time to figure things out before you can even begin to do anything crazy. And this? This is definitely way too crazy for you to handle.
‘Gonna nope out of this one, for now,’ you think.
You turn your body and start to hop backwards, when the rustling gets louder, and in a flash, something leaps out from the bushes where the noises were coming from, landing right in front of you somehow. You freak out and leap away in a rather mighty bound that takes you by surprise - and in the midst of this surprise, your back smacks into a nearby tree.
Your heart races, but, you blink when you see what’s now standing before you.
It’s another kangaroo! Only this kangaroo’s body is… not the same as a normal kangaroo (and you would know, given your partially-human form). In fact, you find yourself gawking when you realize it’s a male kangaroo, yet the facial features are not at all masculine - they’re distinctly feminine instead.
“G’day. And sorry about the fright. Overshot my jump.”
You blink a few more times. The kangaroo has spoken, and, not only is it perfectly pronounced English with an accent, the voice is also decidedly that of a woman, if a little deeper-sounding. You stare at this kangaroo, trying to make heads or tails of what on earth is going on in front of you.
The male-bodied kangaroo shakes its head. “You’re not hearing things, mate.” The smile they have is human, very much human. “And you’re not seeing things, either. I’m not an illusion. I’m in the same boat as you, just on the flipside of things for the costume I ended up with is all.”
You slowly come to the realization, and, your brain starts to catch up with you.
“Well, go on then,” the woman - you think? - says. “You can still speak, I’d gamble, right?” They look at you. “Sorry again about the scare, though.”
You suck in a quiet breath, clear your throat, and, do so. “Uh.”
There’s a beat of silence. You feel a flush from your cheeks as the kangaroo woman eyes you with a broad grin - amusement is obvious on their face.
“Go on, try again,” they say. “You can talk the same as you could before, just gonna sound a bit different is all.”
“Y-yes,” you say, at last. Your voice comes out fine, and you sound much like you did before all this - the only difference is that your voice is a little lighter in pitch, and slightly softer than it used to be. Probably because you ended up choosing a female bodied costume. “…this is… this is something else.”
“Aye, definitely is,” the other kangaroo says, nodding, then they snicker as they appraise. “Ha. So you’re a yank, I take it, eh? Sound like one from the voice, which ain’t a huge deal. Somehow, I’m not surprised.” They snicker. “Thanks for not trying ‘sound’ like a typical Aussie - bloody bogan tourists can’t help themselves, and it’s a right mess whenever they try to be one of us.”
You shrug. “Hadn’t… erm. Hadn’t really crossed my mind to try.”
Your voice is strange to hear, you feel. You are definitely going to need to get used to that shift, at least until you get a new costume.
“Eh, no worries,” they say. “Born in Queensland myself, but spent a good ten years over in the States.” They pause at this and hop over toward you - they are noticeably bigger and bulkier than you, that’s for certain. “Name’s Erin. Yes, I’m a woman, I just got a new knob attachment for the foreseeable future.”
You give her your name, and she nods at this, still grinning.
“Take it you just came outta that room, huh?” Erin asks. “Chose yourself a door, then another door, bam, you get to stick on a costume and here you are?”
“Yes,” you say.
You’re a little relieved to know you’re not the only person around in that situation. This Erin person definitely has a knowing expression on her face, and there’s a hint of familiarity in her dark eyes.
“It’s a lot to deal with at once,” you admit, and you glance down at your furry form. “Especially when, you know, you end up in the… erm… the body of the opposite gender.”
“Yeah, been down this road a few times,” Erin says, and her tone is one of calmness and understanding. “You get used to it. Being able to change up the costume after a while can be a bloody pain, but, it depends on the kinda person you are and what form you’ve been given.”
You can’t help eyeing her. “You don’t mind having a male kangaroo body?”
She snorts out a laugh. “Oh, mate, I’ve been in a male body a lot thanks to these costumes. It’s strange, sure, but,” she shrugs, “ain’t so bad after awhile.”
Silence falls for a moment, and you aren’t sure what to do next - you didn’t expect any of this to happen when you went through that first door, so you are admittedly at a bit of a loss, being stuck in this costume for a long stretch of time. You are at least somewhat thankful to be in the presence of Erin, though.
“So, uh--”
Before you can speak, you stop when you hear something further off - a howl, a very high-pitched and eerie howl, that echoes from afar and seems to seep through your ears and into your very bones.
You gawk at the sound. “Is that… a wolf?”
“Dingo,” Erin says. She’s looking the same direction as the howl.
Your eyes widen. ‘Dingo! That’s what it was…’
You recall that dingoes are one of the more prominent predatory animals in Australia that you can actually think of right now. And no sooner do you recall this do you realize that a dingo might be one of the few creatures that could prove to be a threat to a kangaroo. They’ve got sharp teeth and can travel in packs…
You? You’re in the body of a lone kangaroo. Not good odds.
You look at Erin. She seems alert and there’s an air of earnest tension forming around her, though she doesn’t seem nearly as worried as you are.
“Do… do we need to be worried about that?” you ask. You feel like it could be one, but, maybe there’s more for all you know. It’s hard to tell exactly.
“Definitely not something we should ignore, mate,” Erin says. She nods her head to the side. “Let’s get outta this spot and move. You can ask your questions and learn from me when we’re safe, ‘cause the last thing your arse needs is some silly bugger dingo wanting to make a meal outta you.”
She starts to hop away, back the direction she came from, and now you find yourself wondering whether or not you want to follow her. You could follow her, sure, but, do you want to trust some stranger? Or do you want to go your own way instead? Your mind races, and you try to ponder your next move carefully.
Written by Hollowpages on 15 August 2020