Shapeshifters - Roxanne Hegarty (book club reads TXT) 📗

It all started on a rainy Sunday. Which is so typically British I feel I must talk with Estuary English and stick my pinky into the air. But you don't care about that, you're dying to know what it is that happened on this typical British day. I'll tell you; I hit puberty.
Now before we get all personal, I feel it is only right that I tell you a bit about myself. I'm an average girl (don't worry boys, I promise I won't mention the "p" word) who enjoys the company of her friends. The name's Zephyra, don't ask me where my parents got that one! I'm smart enough and do well in school, so I have totally got the whole biology thing down. So when I noticed I had hair EVERYHERE, I was kind of concerned. I mean, I know that some people have more hair than others, but I had hair on the top of my lip, on my hand, on my fingers, my feet, my toes and... well you get the idea. Think of anywhere on my body (stop laughing you dirty bastards) and I had hair there (I mean it, stop laughing; this is serious stuff!). So I told the school nurse and she congratulated me, I had finally reached puberty. I was confused, I mean I was sure that I wasn't meant to have hair EVERYWHERE!But apparently thats normal.
But what's so important about me hitting puberty you ask? I'll tell you; I got superpowers! No, I couldn't fly, shoot laser beams out of my eyes, freeze things with my breath, read minds or make machinary do what I want. Hey, dont close the book! Jeez, what happened to appreciating originality?!? No, I could do something much cooler! But I'm not going to tell you what it is! Well, not yet.
I didn't even realise until I complained to my mum about it.
"It's so embarrasing!" I moaned as she stacked dishes into the dishwasher (We had just had dinner, I was leaning against the counter and my dad was reading the paper at the kitchen table)"I have hair in places I didn't know could grow hair!"
"Zephyra, that is not appropriate!" my dad spluttered, legs in the air. Yes, my dear, mature and sophisticated father had fallen off his chair.
"What? It's the truth! I can't wear anything revealing anymore!" I gave a dramatic sigh as my mother stood, wiping her hands on her jeans. She gave me the raised eyebrow look (you know, the one that says "oh, you really should not have said that") and said in a clipped tone "Aw, what a shame. My daughter can't dress like a slut, I'm so disappointed for her!" I winced slightly; I nevr dressed like a slut (at least, not while I was still in the house, but if I was around a friends house and I had my micro skirt on me...)and took a seat at the kitchen table, where my father had successfully recomposed himself.
"But really, it's embarrassing! It's also a drak grey, not even my hair colour and... SQUAK!" That noise was me, jumping ten feet into the air when an almighty crash came from behind me. My mum had decided to drop a vase, and she was now staring at me in shock/horror. I don't blame her, she just learned her daughter is a hairy beast and that she makes squaking noises before taking off into the air, shocked. Maybe I was part bird?
"Baby, we need to talk. You're not an ordinary girl, you're a shapeshifter. You can turn into an animal, but what that animal is just shows us who you are inside," My mum whispered before sinking into a faint. I laughed at the time. I'm not laughing now.
You probably want to know what animal I can turn into. Well, your guess is as good as mine, because I'm still waiting for the full transformation. Maybe it will be soon; maybe not. I'll let you know either way, okay?

Publication Date: 04-25-2012

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