Well, today I did it. I finally took the plunge, and in more ways than one there’s no turning back now.

The procedure was scary at first. To say that my parents were displeased with my decision would be an understatement. Practically everything in the lab had been “subtly” sabotaged to either prevent the procedure from working, kill the scientists conducting the procedure, or both. But against all odds, things went just fine. And after all those years of neglecting me in favor of their gadgets, trying to coerce me into taking part in the “family profession”, and overall viewing me more as an extension of their legacy than as a person with agency, part of me takes some sort of pleasure in knowing that they were watching the whole thing go off without a hitch from their “sneaky” hiding spot, positively fuming.

And now, I am in a form befitting my true self. It is a strange feeling in multiple ways, really. Most obvious is the physical aspect of it. It is quite the surreal experience to be in this new, wildly different shape after having spent my entire life up to now as a normal human. Funnily enough, one of the things that may well take the most getting used to is having the lower part of my vision constantly occupied by a long, dark brown muzzle, as opposed to a relatively small and unobtrusive nose. A strange change indeed, but at the same time, looking at it gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling, and not just because my body is now covered in warm fuzz.

Another major thing I’ll need to get used to is my new wing arms. Part of it is simply the sensation of having wings at all. The feeling of the air against the membranes as I swish my wings around is positively indescribable. And though I haven’t even begun the learning process yet, the idea that I’ll one day be able to freely take to the skies is a positively exhilarating one. Though for right now, the thing I’m worried about learning is indoor wing safety. I keep forgetting about how long my new wings can reach out and have accidentally knocked over a distressing amount of objects while simply trying to go through my day. Earlier, while walking through the kitchen, I accidentally knocked over some of my glassware, which was not fun to clean up, especially since in the process of doing so I accidentally knocked over yet more glassware with my new squirrel tail.

That’s a fitting segue, I suppose. Indeed, having such a big tail can be quite tricky, especially given that I don’t exactly have the roomiest apartment. Still, I wouldn’t trade it away for the world. For one thing, as with the wings, I imagine that navigating my apartment with it will become second nature in a relatively short time (here’s hoping I still have sufficient dishes when the dust settles). But aside from that, this all just feels so right. Plus, it’s pretty chilly out due to the latest League of Dastardly Doom plot, so being able to wrap a big, bushy tail around myself is a definite plus.

I wonder if I can use my tail to help with bringing in groceries. Then again, I’ll just be happy if I can get through the market without too many “You break it, you buy it” incidents.

Anyway, a third thing that’s going to take a lot of getting used to is the ears. Not the physical sensation of having my ears at the top of my head - at this point, I’m already feeling pretty used to that - but rather the hearing itself. I knew going in that my hearing range was going to increase dramatically, as bats are known for their high hearing range, but it’s still quite jarring at times, experiencing a whole new world of sounds. It’s not all positive, though. While said evil scheme was going on earlier, I found myself envying the limited hearing of humans, as they didn’t have to put up with the loud, annoying, high-pitched sound that machine was emitting.

Going back to the squirrel side of things: Paws. My new body is primarily that of a fruit bat, albeit a rather human-sized one. The two exceptions are my squirrel tail and my squirrel forepaws. The paws function rather well as hands. Not flawlessly, but at least well enough to write legibly, which is my main concern. I suspect they would also be pretty good for climbing, but I haven’t tested that out yet.

The above has just been the practical side of things. But really... that’s not the biggest part for me. Yes, this new body has its challenges and its benefits, but in the end, the most important thing is that it just feels right. I may still be getting used to living as a bat-squirrel, but from the very first moment the procedure was complete, I knew that this was the right choice. This is the form I was always meant to be in, whether my parents like it or not.