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CHAPTER 1: MONDAY

"So then I said, 'Darlin, if you want to see the whole thing, you'll need to take a bus to the next city'!" The man's sudden braying laughter startled the couple at the table next to him. His face was flushed from the martinis and he seemed to have no idea how loud he was talking. The clear liquid of his drink sloshed over the glass and onto the table while he tried to catch his breath.

Victoria had to run the last bit of the conversation in her head a few times to get the joke. Weren't they just talking about his money? No, his wallet. So then what...? Oh. Huh. He was trying to make a joke about his dick, wasn't he? Some feeble attempt at sexual innuendo. She spared an apologetic glance at the man and woman next to their table. The lady gave her a look of commiseration back.

The man's laughter died down to chortles before his eyes focused on his drink again. He took a loud slurp before talking. "What kinda name is Victoria Resta, anyway? Is it Eye-talion?" His eyes wandered from his drink to stare openly at Victoria's chest, as if he could see through the cream colored button-down shirt she was wearing.

"No, it's not Italian." She took a breath, wanting to end this. "My..."

"Can I call ya 'Vicky'?" He slurred, spilling the rest of his drink on their table.

"I don't think so. Look, John, I appreciate the dinner but I'm going back up to my room now. I can't say it's been a great evening." Victoria stood, gathering her small clutch purse in her hand.

"Well, hey! Hey, wait! Don't just..." He stood and grabbed at her wrist. "Don't just leave me here, dammit. Have a drink. Talk with me." Victoria could see the broken veins in his nose and cheeks. He wasn't even forty years old yet but he was well on his way to drinking himself into a grave.

Victoria brought her eyes slowly down to the man's hand on her sleeve. This was her favorite shirt. Silk. She saved up to buy it. The man looked down after a moment and he stared at his own hand, stupidly not understanding the problem.

Thankfully, their waiter seemed to sense the mood and drifted over to their table. He was well dressed in his white shirt and black pants with his hair cut short. "Is there anything I can help with?" He asked, politely. He was trained too well to make a scene in the restaurant and John had thirty pounds and five inches on him. Of course, the extra weight wasn't muscle but it still made a small difference.

"No, thank you. I was just leaving. John here will take care of the bill." She placed her hand on John's hand. He looked back up at her, still not comprehending. Victoria sighed and tugged his hand off of her. She almost screamed when she saw a faint smear of steak sauce on the cuff.

Barely controlling her anger, she turned and stalked off. She received a few approving glances from the men around her as she left. She wasn't a beauty but she was attractive and her heels showed the nice definition in her calf muscles. Unlike a lot of the scarecrow women around her, she seemed to gain weight quite easily so she worked hard at her shape by jogging daily. She swore her hips laughed at her attempts to stay lean. Her mother told her they were good "child bearing hips" and Victoria reminded her every time that this wasn't the 1900s. Being five feet, three inches didn't help her self image, either. She always wanted to be taller even though quite a few guys told her she was beautiful the way she was. They all say that. It's easy for them to say.

The restaurant was attached to the hotel she was staying in so the walk back to her room was brief. Her heels came off her feet as soon as she was inside her room. She appreciated what they did for her legs but her toes wept every time she wore them. After making sure the curtains were shut, she stripped down to her panties and bra - sensible, inexpensive, comfortable and black.

She padded into the small bathroom with her shirt in one hand. The hotel used liquid face soap, so she filled the sink with hot water and mixed in some soap, swirling it around. She gently laid her shirt on the counter to let the sleeve soak in the water.

She looked at herself in the mirror. "Oh, Victoria. What are you doing?" She asked herself. At 28 years old she was showing small wrinkles at the corners of her large, dark brown eyes. Her curly hair hung loose behind her and she pulled back some strands from her face. She prided herself on her thick, dark red curls. Her hair was almost brown but when the light caught her right, the red came through like dark copper. Her heart-shaped face stared back at her, lips full and dark brown from the lipstick. She fingered the small cross on her necklace as she studied herself.

It was Monday night, the first night of the conference. She worked in a real estate office in Arizona and her company had sent her to Seattle for a conference on the housing market and its future. She'd done well supporting the real estate agents so they were prepping her to take over a junior member's accounts. It was a great opportunity for her and she hoped it'd help her afford more than ramen noodles every night.

Being in a strange city threw her off. What was there to do in the evenings in a city she didn't know? She couldn't get over how cold and dark it was, even at 4 pm when the conference ended for the day. And the rain. Dear God, the rain. Didn't the city know it was January? She wondered. What started as a drizzle in the morning turned into a steady rain of fat raindrops. It wasn't even respectable hard driving rain like you'd get in a rainstorm. No, this was a lazy rain that seemed like it could go on forever.

Victoria sighed and grabbed her toothbrush. She scrubbed gently at the spot on her sleeve to try and get it out.

She didn't have the energy to go out in this dark, dreary rain so she'd haunted the hotel bar. When John offered to buy her a drink, she'd accepted. He seemed okay at the time and was dressed well enough. She let him buy her dinner because her per diem was small and prices were crazy. Also, McDonalds didn't deliver and packs of noodles took up a surprising amount of suitcase space so she didn't take food with her.

Hah. The stain was coming out a little. That was a small victory, at least. She told herself.

She had thought maybe it'd be fun to live a little by meeting a stranger in a bar for a drink. She'd been shy growing up so she mostly kept to herself. Now that she was in a new place for a short time why shouldn't she meet some guys and let them pay for her dinner? She wasn't dumb enough to get drunk or sleep with them and it beat just staying in her hotel room the entire time. Unless they were all like this John guy, of course.

When she finished with the sleeve she could barely see the stain. The damn shirt had cost her over $300. She had to save up several paychecks just to make sure she could afford it with her bills. She was immensely glad her mother taught her how to take care of herself; dry cleaning was absolutely out of the question with her income. She laid out the shirt with the cuff on a hand towel to dry.

While she washed off her toothbrush she noticed some dry skin on her right hand. How in the world did she go from Arizona to a wet city like Seattle and get dried out? She wondered. The dryness started near her thumb, ran up to her index finger and around the side of it. She made a mental note to buy some cheap lotion on her lunch break tomorrow. The TSA had confiscated several of her containers at the airport in Phoenix even though she was sure they were the right size.

She stopped herself from scratching at her hand and worked at removing her makeup. She shook her head. What a waste. I might as well have gone without makeup for all the good it did me tonight. I even used my good lipstick. She tsked at herself.

Finally, she brushed her teeth with the complimentary tooth paste. It still tasted like soap but even soapy breath was better than having pieces of salad stuck between her teeth. At least, that's what she told herself.

For a reason she could never quite figure out, she hated sleeping in just a bra and panties in bed. The hotel bed was no different - she wore a plain t-shirt over her bra. She tucked herself in bed and tried to arrange the pillows to work better. All of them were much harder than she liked but they would work. She propped herself up to watch some television but it was mostly crap. Even HBO was just showing some old Adam Sandler movie. She tolerated it a bit before clicking it off.

Victoria turned off the bedside lamp and laid her necklace near the alarm clock. Lying down, she pushed the blankets down to her thighs. She'd need to shave again, she thought. Her legs felt a little rough and she really wanted to try out some miniskirts tomorrow.

Victoria pulled her panties down a little to expose the smooth, shaved skin of her crotch. She reached her fingers down and gently played with her labia and clit. There was another dry area on the skin of her left thigh, running close to her pussy.

She ignored the dry sking and rubbed herself slowly - it was early and she wasn't in any hurry. She brought her shirt up over her breasts - nice c-cups with big fat nipples. She'd been teased about them when she was a young girl but her breasts filled out and now they matched her shape. She caressed her left breast with her left hand, trailing a finger over the nipple and around the aureole. The nipple stiffened lazily.

She could feel her own arousal and she teased herself by dipping two fingers inside the warm wetness between her legs. She bit her lip and twisted her feet against the feeling. The heel of her hand settled against her clit and she rubbed it up and down as she brought her fingers slowly in and out of herself. The rough, dried skin on her right hand actually made the feeling more intense and she found herself rubbing the side of her index finger against her pussy lips. She wasn't quite as wet as she liked but the roughness felt different to her - different in a way she liked.

Her breathing quickened. She pinched and rolled her nipple, kneading the soft flesh of her breast over and over. She brought her right hand to her mouth and sucked on the fingers, wetting them and tasting herself. She pulled her nipple hard and moaned, stretching her feet. Her right hand found her pussy lips again and she almost didn't need to use her mouth on her fingers. At first she rubbed the lips gently in circles but her speed increased and soon she was rubbing faster and faster, pressing hard against herself. Every time she rubbed her clit, a jolt of pleasure shot down her left leg.

She twisted on the bed, pulling, squeezing her own breast and rubbing herself furiously. Close, so close! Her fingertips worked inside her and she could feel the orgasm building. She turned her hand so the rough skin pressed into her and worked it up and down inside her cunt. She conjured up the image of a faceless man fucking her - biting and sucking on her nipples. Minutes later the orgasm hit and she turned her head to shriek into her pillow while her legs and hips bucked. The hand that was torturing her nipple grabbed a handful of bed sheet as her body shook.

Maybe there's an upside to all of this crappy weather, she thought. That was one of my best orgasms outside of sex with a guy.

CHAPTER 2: TUESDAY

Her dreams were dark and she woke up several times during the night with a general sense of dread. All she could remember in the morning were pitch black shapes shifting and rolling over and over and something almost like speech but then it was gone. It left her feeling uneasy.

Just as she was about to shower, she noticed the dry patch on her hand was worse. It now covered the top of her right hand and even her left hand had a small spot of dryness. Her left thigh was half covered and now her right thigh had a patch of dry skin as well. Even her belly was itching. The skin wasn't red and she didn't see any bumps or anything to make her think it was a rash. It was just... the skin was thicker and itched fiercely when she paid it attention. Twice she had to stop herself from scratching.

The hot water from the shower was luxurious. Normally she was fast in the shower but since she didn't have to pay for the water, she enjoyed herself. A part of her felt like she'd been out in the cold a long time; as if she'd always been cold. The hot water soaked down into her core. She spent at least 10 minutes just standing under the water and steam, turning this way and that.

The hotel soap was substandard but worked well enough. She made a lather with her hand and rubbed herself down. Her breasts were especially soft and she made sure to clean them well. She rubbed slowly over her nipples, around the sides and under the breasts, lifting them up as she did. They seemed heavier this morning and it felt like a nerve ran directly from her nipple to her crotch and then her toe every time her hand rubbed one of her nipples.

She worked her stomach next, sliding her soapy hands around her body. She was pleased to find that all the crunches she'd been doing at the gym might finally be paying off - she could feel some muscle under a thin layer of fat. She made a mental note to try out the little gym downstairs later today to keep it up. She'd only ever been able to get muscle tone in her legs before. Well, her ass did okay too but she could still stand to lose a bit there.

Victoria found another rough patch of skin on the bottom of her left ass cheek. When she let the water run over it, the skin felt a little softer. She added another mental note for a soak in the bath before bed.

She gave extra attention to her left leg and the combination of the heat, water and soap felt good against the rough spots of skin. The urge to scratch her skin was insane so she finished as quickly as possible.

After she washed the soap from her body, she leaned back against the wall of the shower with her legs spread. She teased the lips of her pussy with one hand while another massaged her breast. Victoria rubbed herself slowly with her eyes closed, enjoying the feel of her rough fingers against the smooth skin of her pussy. When her legs shook a little from the intense feelings, she stopped. She thought briefly of continuing but she knew she'd never be able to stay standing up once she really got into it.

After drying off, she found a nice dark brown blouse that went well with her hair. Her skirt was out since the rough patch of skin went down to her knee so she picked out some simple slacks and a pair of dark red flat shoes. She put on some light makeup and a dab of perfume, just in case.

The meeting room was half full of people and Victoria was feeling self-conscious about the rash so she sat in the back. She knew almost everything she needed, anyway. One of the reasons they were promoting her was because she paid attention and learned fast. She took some notes in the class but day dreamed most of the time. She snapped out of it a little before noon when she found herself making long scratches up and down her left leg. Good Lord, she thought. Next I'll be sticking my hand down my pants to scratch my crotch like some hick. Although... it is feeling a little itchy down there.

To distract herself from scratching she tried to focus on the meeting. That went fine until her mind wandered and she found herself rubbing the base of her hand on the edge of the table in front of her, over and over. Thankfully, it was almost lunchtime so she snuck out of the back of the room early.

A quick stop at her room allowed her to drop off her notes and then she left to find the nearest drug store. She told herself that there had to be something to help.

The rain had actually stopped last night so she was treated to an overcast day rather than just rain. She missed the sun - she felt sluggish and cold without it. How did these people live here without going crazy?

A Rite Aid store happened to be the closest one so she stopped in to find some products. She wandered around slowly until she finally found the lotions. An elderly store employee asked if she needed help as Victoria looked through the different brands. Figures, she thought. Just as I found what I was looking for. She told the lady, 'no' politely and went back to digging through the bottles. She found one and popped the top to smell it.

"Oh, honey. You don't want to taste that." The old lady was at her side again.

Victoria snapped her eyes open and noticed her tongue was out, inches away from the top of the lotion's cap. "I... what? No, of course I wouldn't." The lady opened her mouth as if to say something else but finally walked away without another word.

Checking a few more products, she found the first one was the best - or at least it didn't smell as strongly as the others. The last thing she wanted was to smell like a chemical factory.

"There needs to be better truth in advertising." Victoria told the checkout girl. "I just noticed this thing says unscented on the label but here try it, it smells like someone ran a bouquet of flowers through a blender."

The girl sniffed at the bottle but swore she couldn't smell anything. Victoria was not surprised - with all this rain people probably walked around with a perpetual cold. And it was cold. She wished she had a larger coat but who needs one in Arizona? What started as a shiver turned into her scratching her left arm and it took a few seconds for her to notice. It just felt so good to scratch the dry skin. This lotion better work, she thought.

She ate a light meal at a nearby Subway, being sure to keep the receipt for her expense report. She started with a six inch sandwich but bought another one when she was done. Hungrier than I thought. She told herself. I'm definitely going to hit the gym tonight and work this food off on their cheap treadmill.

By the time she was finished with lunch, she still had twenty more minutes before the conference resumed. Victoria made time to stop in her room and put some of the lotion on. In the brief time since this morning, the rash had spread to cover her right thigh, her left calf and her left hand. Her left hip and part of her ass was also rougher to the touch. She used nearly a quarter of the bottle to cover herself.

While she worked the lotion on her skin, she sat next to the heater and turned up the heat. She was definitely staying inside the rest of the trip. Of course, it'd be her luck if it was something in the room making her break out. That would be great - caught between freezing to death outside or breaking out in hives inside.

Victoria sat in the back of the conference room again when the meeting started. The lotion helped somewhat but the rest of the meeting crawled. She found herself doodling squiggly lines all over her notebook. Sometimes they were thin lines, sometimes thicker and filled in. She had no idea she'd even been drawing anything.

She was the first out of the room at four when they were done for the day. She longed for the heater in her room. The coordinator for the conference had refused to turn up the heat in their meeting area. He'd taken a poll and everyone else said they were warm enough.

Back in her own room she stripped to her underwear and crawled under the blankets. She twisted and turned under the covers, enjoying the way the sheets rubbed against her skin. When she realized she was basically scratching herself with her blankets, she stopped and tried to take a nap. It didn't take long - the warmth from the heater and blankets put her out quickly.

She had the same kind of dream again - indistinct figures moving against each other and all of them trying to talk at once, except she couldn't hear them. Their strange voice grew louder and louder until it was almost a roaring in her ears and it startled her awake. She was clutching her hands to her head as if to cover her ears.

Her head hurt but not from a headache - the skin itself hurt. She tsked at herself when she looked at her hand. She had pulled out some of her hair while she was sleeping. Not much - just a fistful of strands - but more than she'd like. No wonder her head hurt. There were even some hairs on her pillow. The deep, dark red of her hair looked nearly black without the lights on. She grimaced. She was really proud of her hair.

A look at the clock told her it was almost 6:30 pm - she'd been asleep for nearly two hours. And hungry. Again. Maybe she'd have better luck tonight at the bar.

She grabbed her brush and sat at the edge of the bed to fix her hair. After a few strokes she had to actually pick the hair from the bristles before she could continue. She ran her fingers through her hair and was happy to feel it as thick and strong as it ever was. She'd have to call her mother tonight and ask if being allergic to something could cause hair to come out.

The rash was growing. Both legs were completely covered by it and both hands as well. She ran her hand down her left side and felt the rough skin on her hip and ass. The right side was still mostly fine. The strange thing was, it didn't hurt. And it didn't look bad, really. In the right light it still looked like her skin. You could even see the freckles on the top. That seemed odd to her but she'd never had a rash before so maybe it was normal.

She turned from the mirror to grab her clothes and then stopped. Her back was red. Well, the area around her spine and shoulders was. It looked almost inflamed. She reached a hand around and made an experimental scratch. She jumped when she did it - it almost felt like when she played with her nipples. She scratched again and got the same reaction - a small lightning bolt that arced from her back to her leg, passing through her pussy on the way down. She felt herself grow wet from the sensation. Unbelievable, she thought.

Was there time to masturbate? What if...? She walked over to the edge of the wall next to her and turned her back against it. Gently, she leaned back so the edge aligned with her spine. She rubbed herself up the wall and her body shook in response. It was like the hand of God Himself was on her cunt, rubbing her. It was almost like masturbating but so much more alien - better in some ways. She didn't even stop to think of what she must look like. She unhooked her bra and let it dangle in front of her. Her breasts sighed in relief and she didn't notice thin lines where the wire of the bra pressed hard against the sides of her breasts.

Victoria brought her hands up above her head to hold on to the edge of the wall. She dropped her hips and then brought herself up and back, rubbing the cheap wallpaper against her back. Her legs twitched and her toes made little fists in the cheap carpet. She turned her head and moaned into the soft white flesh of her arm. Her tongue flicked out, as if on its own and licked her arm. She dragged herself down and had to hold on tight to the wall to keep from dropping to her knees. She could feel her pussy juice running down her thighs. Up and down, she moved slightly side to side to let the edge rub against her spine and the sides of it as well.

She whimpered as she dragged her back up and down. Her panties caught on the wall and were pulled down slightly, the edge of the wall digging between her ass cheeks. Her juice ran down her legs to her knees. She's never been one to self lubricate much and even when she did, it was usually just enough for sex. The feeling was incredible.

Up and down, up and down. She was having a hard time controlling her legs now. She gripped the wall and moved faster, not caring or even thinking about what this was doing to her back. Up and down, up and down. She grabbed her left tit and pulled it up to her mouth. Her slightly longer tongue flicked out to roll over and wrap around her stiff nipple. Her hips bucked against the wall, slamming it hard as her orgasm tore through her body. Her back felt like it was on fire and she could barely move because of all the twitching.

Only now did she realize what she'd just done. She felt ashamed and terrified. She dragged herself up to the full length mirror in the bathroom to look at her back, almost crying when she saw how red her back was. It looked like someone raked their fingernails up and down her back and ass. There was no blood but it looked bad and she could feel it throbbing with her heartbeat.

Victoria crawled back into bed, crying quietly. She tried to think of what she should do but nothing sounded right. Call her mother? What would she tell her - that she had sex with the hotel wall? Call the emergency room? She couldn't afford it even with her crappy insurance.

Eventually her back stopped throbbing. It still felt hot but not nearly like it did while she was rubbing it before. Her stomach decides things - she needs to eat. Victoria very gently clothed herself, cautious of the skin on her back. She grunted, working to get her bra latched again as the material bites into her flesh.

Victoria dug out her favorite lipstick again. It's a small comfort but she felt like even something as simple as that will help to calm her. As she brought the lipstick up to her mouth, she noticed something - she's missing the fingernail from her right pinky finger. It's gone. There's just a mound of flesh where the fingernail used to be. With everything else that's happened, her mind can't seem to grasp the significance of this. Her fingernail was gone. Just. Gone. She tried to think if it happened earlier with the wall or with the scratching but can't remember. Maybe she scratched herself too hard and it came out? She couldn't remember if fingernails grew back but she told herself they had to. If they get longer then they must grow back, she thought. A part of her feels like she should be more scared than she is but it's a small part that she can't seem to hear.

Thankfully, she doesn't normally paint her fingernails so the missing nail is barely noticeable. She keeps a small cache of band aids in her purse and one of them hides the missing nail quite easily. Better than nothing, she tells herself. She runs her hands through her hair again before leaving and isn't pleased to find more hair coming out in her hands. She tells herself that if she's still losing hair like this tomorrow then she'll leave and beg the money for the flight from her parents.

She looked herself over in the mirror one last time, frowning as she does. Her shirt is nice but it doesn't show anything. Normally she hides behind her clothes but why should she? She brings her hands up to the sides of her breasts, squeezing them together. Maybe that was her problem last night - nobody saw what she really looked like so she ended up with a guy like John. If she showed herself off more, then maybe she'd find someone she liked. Somebody more substantial.

She did have one shirt she'd been saving - it was cut low and she never wore it but she brought it just in case. It's a simple cotton shirt but well made and she's amazed at the effect it has on her when she tries it on. She looked completely different. Whereas she was attractive but a little mousey before, now she looked powerful and sexy. She dug her hands into her bra to pull her breasts into a more comfortable position. She didn't spare a thought as to why her bra is feeling too tight. She's hypnotized by her figure - a true hourglass shape with her hips flaring out and her chest threatening to pop out of her shirt. Thankfully, the rash hasn't made its way to her chest.

The restaurant's bar is fairly packed but there are a couple stools open. She picked one and sat, eyeing the crowd. There are several handsome men around but only a few unattached. She boldly eyed two men sitting in a corner booth and smiled when one of them looked over at her. It takes several more glances and several more smiles before he gets the hint but he finally does. She watched the man excuse himself from his friend as he made his way over to her. She has never felt so self confident before - it's as if she was seized by some crazy, manic energy.

The man is dressed in a classic suit - black pants, white shirt and a silk black tie. His dark jacket draped over his arm. His hair is short and slicked back over his head. She wondered if he was a senator or a president of some company. A glint caught her eye and she glanced down at his sleeves to note he was even wearing cufflinks.

"Hi. Mind if I sit down?" He asked her.

She looked him up and down boldly. "My feelings would be hurt if you didn't." She told him. "I was just about to think of dinner but the thought of eating alone seemed too sad." Her heart was racing and her mind felt like it was going a million miles a minute. She almost felt drugged - here but not present.

"What a coincidence. I haven't eaten yet. My name's Rob." He reached out his right hand towards her.

"Victoria." She said. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

They made their way to a booth and ordered drinks. Rob ordered a whiskey and Victoria surprised herself when she asked for the same. Rob raised an eye at her but made no comment.

Victoria smiled coyly at the man sitting across from her. She found herself leaning forward slightly to show off her ample cleavage. The man's eyes flicked down and then back up to her eyes.

"So, Rob, what do you do?" She asked.

"Oh. Uh. Investments. California." He grimaced and took a swallow of his drink. "I have a small company in California and a group of clients I work with. Investments, primarily. I'm just in town visiting some family and thought I'd see about expanding my business a little. Seattle has some amazing companies and my family knows a few important people that might help me win some business. And if I can help companies do better while making a little extra money for myself then I feel happy." He smiled and Victoria found herself warming to this handsome young man. She had no doubt that brilliant smile won him a few clients. That, she thought. And he even smells nice.

When their food finally arrived, her steak was undercooked. Victoria poked at it experimentally while the waiter peppered Rob's salad.

Rob watched pink juice pool out from Victoria's steak. "Oh, excuse me waiter but I think the lady ordered her steak well done."

Victoria waved the water away. "No, no. It's fine. I'll still eat it. I'm starving and it's still good. I don't' think I can live off of bread rolls while waiting for another steak. It's still good." She'd always been grossed out by her friends ordering rare steaks but found that she didn't care right now. She was pleasantly surprised to find it was actually delicious. They ate without speaking, enjoying the quiet of their little booth.

"Don't take this the wrong way but how in the world can you eat that without chewing?" Rob asked.

Victoria paused with her fork halfway to her mouth. "I..." She stopped, thinking back to what she was just doing. Oh my god. I haven't been chewing at all. Just swallowing each bite. She chuckled nervously. "Oh, I've been chewing. I'm just careful about it. Manners, you know." She brought another small piece of steak to her mouth and purposefully chewed it. It somehow felt odd on her teeth.

With dinner done and the plates taken away, they both sat, sipping their drinks. Victoria was utterly relaxed listening to Rob talk about the beaches in California when he stopped to ask if she was okay.

"I'm more than okay. It's wonderful listening to someone that can think beyond their dick." As soon as she said it, she wished she could take it back. She's never been crude before and certainly not in public. She doesn't even know why she said it - she's not drunk or even tipsy.

Rob tilted his head slightly, as if not knowing how to take the comment. He finally decided it was an odd compliment. "I meant your hand. You've been scratching it for the last several minutes and I think you drew a little blood." He told her.

She looked down and immediately hid her hands under the table. She scratched through the dry skin on her left hand without noticing it. That's not what scared her, however. The quick glance she had told her there's not new pink skin underneath - there's something hard and shiny. She looked again but there wasn't enough lighting to see properly. Whatever it was, it was dark and smooth to the touch. While feeling around the area, her finger caught on the edge of the skin. With a small pull, more of her skin came away revealing the same smooth material underneath.

"I think... I think I'm going to be sick." Victoria staggered upright and nearly ran to the bathroom.

Rob stood with her, a look of concern on his face. "Should I...?" Victoria gave him no time to offer help or anything else; she ran to the restrooms while hiding her hand under her armpit.

In the bathroom (thankfully empty) she grabbed a stall, closing the door behind her. She dry heaved into the toilet over and over. Her hands shook against the side of the toilet. She looked at her hand in the harsh fluorescent light. Scales. There's nothing else to call the new skin other than scales. Pure black snake scales. She dry heaved again and still nothing came out.

With a cry she tore at the skin on her hand and it came away easily, exposing more and more of the scales beneath. She beat her hands against the toilet seat while sobbing, chest heaving. When she could see through the tears, she saw her pinky finger band aid in the toilet. Floating along with it was a thick clump of her hair. Victoria brought her hand gingerly up to her head, feeling around her scalp. When she looked at her hand, her eyes widened in fear.

Her pinky finger was no longer missing a fingernail. Or, more precisely, there was now a thick, black talon growing out of the tip of her pinky finger. Victoria wavered and nearly passed out before catching herself.

"Away. I have to get away from here." She pulled herself up and walked to the door, bumping into the wall. She felt feverish and the room swayed dangerously in front of her. She left the bathroom, walking straight for the exit, not even glancing toward the booth she had shared with Rob. Unfortunately, he was waiting for her at the doors leading out of the restaurant. Victoria clutched her left hand in her right armpit, hiding it from him.

"Hey, Victoria! Are you okay? You worried me there. I'm not so ugly that you'd have to run from me, am I?" He chuckled but his face betrayed his emotions - he was worried for her. Victoria didn't look at him.

"I've... I'm okay. I just... I just have to go." She tried to go around him but he blocked her.

"Are you sure? You don't look good. Here, let me at least give you my card. If you need anything, you call. Don't worry about the time or anything. Just call me, okay?" He put his card out and Victoria grabbed it blindly before shouldering past him. She couldn't breathe and everything was going crazy around her. When she passed close to Rob, she noticed his cologne but there was an undercurrent to the smell, something she never noticed and can't even begin to identify. Her tongue flicks out of her mouth twice, tasting the air.

"Go. I've got to go. Thank you." She mumbled. Nothing made sense and her head was buzzing.

She didn't remember the trip to her room. She has brief memories of people walking past her and looking at her strangely but she doesn't care. She barely remembered to lock the door behind her before she collapsed to the ground.

Victoria twisted on the cheap short pile carpet. Her body jerked as the muscles in her stomach clenched and unclenched over and over. Her nipples dragged against the floor, stiffening against the tight fitting shirt. She rubbed her arms on the ground as her body involuntarily twisted. There was an itch deep in her body that she couldn't seem to scratch and it was driving her crazy. She rolled from her stomach to her back and back again, pushing and rubbing against the ground. Her body was on fire.

She rubbed her hands down her stomach and sides, down over her ass and into her shirt. The muscles in her arm suddenly tightened and she ripped her shirt down the middle. Her breasts were overflowing the bra - they were larger now and the bra was cutting deep into her skin. It took her three tugs to break the bra down the front. Her shirt hangs loose on her shoulders and back.

Victoria felt an itch deep in the center of her brain. Her hands reached up, fingers running through her thick hair but she couldn't reach the itch. Her fingers clenched, digging and pulling into her scalp. Her hands came away with her thick red curls between the fingers. The itch was flaring - hissing and talking and screaming at her. Her hair came out freely as she rubbed her head in the ground and pulled her hair. She felt bumps all over her head - tiny bumps bulging out from her scalp.

Victoria writhed on the ground. Her hands shook against the button of her pants but she couldn't control what she was doing. Hard black claws grew from her fingers, cutting her short, clear fingernails in half. The claws lengthened into short, thick talons with razor points. She tried again to pull at her pants but ended up ripping them into ribbons instead. She couldn't remember how to pull her pants off anymore. Her new claws cut ribbons of dead flesh from her hips and ass as she tore through the pants. Her talons made a sound like steel scratching against steel but the scales underneath her skin were unmarked.

She felt hot, so hot - like someone poured molten steel down her back. She screamed, tearing at her spine with her bare hands, shredding her shirt. The red skin around her spine broke apart, bleeding little trails down her back. Small pink scales lined her spine from her ass to the back of her neck in a bloody trail. Within seconds, the older pink scales darkened to a blood red color and grew larger, covering a six inch span along the length of her spine. She was on her stomach, her back arched with her head pulled back in a silent scream. Her canine teeth lengthened as the teeth next to them fell out to be replaced by smaller sharp teeth. Her tongue elongated, losing some of its girth in the process. At three inches of extra length, the tongue stopped, splitting down the middle, separating the very tip into two parts of pink flesh.

Her vision blurred as her pupils reshaped themselves into vertical slits, her eye color changing to a dark jade green.

Victoria was on her back again, desperately trying to rub the new flesh of her back against something rough. She tore at the flesh of her arms, cutting bloody grooves in her biceps and tearing dead skin from her forearms, revealing more blackened scales. The cuts in her biceps slowly healed over while she trashed.

There was movement on her head but she barely noticed. Whatever it is, it's jerking her head in different directions. She still can't focus because of the screaming in her brain and the pain she feels all over her body. Her upper body has thickened, retaining her same proportions but growing larger. Her breasts hang full and heavy to her side, the nipples even larger than before. Her shirt and bra are in tatters on the floor around her.

Suddenly, there's a burning around her cunt. Without conscious thought she tries again to push her pants off but she can't move her arms properly. Instead, she contents herself with trying to scratch the impossible itch inside her body. Dead white skin comes off easily around her ass and crotch as she scratches. The pitch black scales start just below her belly button and disappear into her pants, hidden under dying skin. She can almost feel them growing up her body - it feels like someone has grabbed a handful of her nerve endings and are pulling over and over. The scales come up and cradle her belly in an arc, from the top of her left hip, down just touching her belly button and up again to the top of her other hip.

With a loud crack, her pelvis breaks and reshapes, moving her vagina to the front of her body. Small, pale scales grow down from her belly to cover her labia, turning black and hardening as they develop. Her pussy lips pull into her body leaving a wet slit behind. The bones of her pelvis segment into pieces.

She feels a pain in her spine, as if someone is slamming her spine with a sledgehammer. The bones fracture and reform, thinner but wider and stronger. If she could move, she'd find that she could bend her body to bring her head between her legs. Her ribs shift and grow joints along their lengths to accommodate her new flexibility.

There's a sickening popping sound as the bones in her legs and feet break apart and dissolve. The burning in her pussy moves up her back and she feels something on her ass, as if a drunken surgeon is stitching the skin around her ass shut with a burning hot needle. Her upper body shakes against the pain. The feeling moves slowly down her body. She can feel her pants moving against the skin of her legs.

A line of skin is growing from her spine, pulling her two legs together. As it does, it pushes against her clothes, forcefully pushing them down her body. Where her legs are joined together, the old skin is pulled off leaving large midnight black scales in their place. She feels something tugging against her spine as her legs fuse, inch by inch.

When her knees are joined together, the pain in her body starts to lessen.

Victoria almost screamed when she hears voices, loud and strong as if someone were talking directly into her brain.

"...Girl...Ssssleeep...girl... giiirrll... Ssssssssleeep girl..." The voices talk over each other endlessly. It's the last conscious thought she has before blacking out.

While she sleeps, her legs continue to pull together until her feet have melded. There's a pause as her body prepares itself. Finally, a new growth extends past where her toes used to be. Her spinal column grows a new segment and is quickly swallowed by muscle, veins, curved bones and a light, translucent skin. Bit by bit her new tail grows longer and longer. Eventually, the new skin hardens into black, shiny scales.

CHAPTER 3: WEDNESDAY

In her dreams, Victoria sat before a huge blazing red fire over a mountain of black coals. It warmed her and comforted her but she couldn't say why. She felt so cold in the dark. Behind her, monstrous shapes shifted and moaned but didn't dare to approach her. She lay down as close as she could to the fire and slept peacefully.

When she woke, she felt the coarse carpet against her skin. Her body felt heavy and sluggish, as if she was suddenly woken from a particularly short nap. Grey light filtered through her curtains. She couldn't remember why she was on the floor - specifically why she was naked on the floor. Well, wearing pants it felt like.

She pushed herself up and tried to bring her left knee under her to stand. What happened instead was a sudden swift movement and her head slammed into the ceiling with a loud crack. She immediately fell forward with her eyes closed, putting her hands out to shield herself from falling on the floor. When she didn't feel the impact from the ground, she opened her eyes. She was hovering three feet off of the ground, breasts dangling heavy below her. Her hair slid under hair, dangling in the air.

Victoria stared at the ground below her. She couldn't make sense of it. It felt like her toes were caught on something, holding her up. As if with just the muscles in her lower leg she was able to keep herself at a crazy angle. When she was a child she used to play a game where she would lean forward as far as she could without falling over. This felt exactly the same, except that she was completely horizontal. And her damn hair kept getting in her eyes.

Out of a habit born from years of dealing with unbound long hair, Victoria reached to brush her hair behind her ears. Her fingers froze. This was not her thick, soft hair. Her fingers touched something cool and smooth, almost like marble but with little indentations. She pulled one of the things around to look at it and shrieked when her eyes focused enough to see what it was - a thin, pure black snake.

"...told... sooon... you... tooo soon... told you.. told youuuu... too soon... toooold you... too soon... sleeep... told youuuu... sssssleeep... no... ssshee neeeeds to ssssseeee..." The voices came at her from both sides and she couldn't shut them out, not even with her hands clamped to her ears. A loud WHOMP WHOMP CRASH WHOMP! sound echoed around the room.

"... calm! ... girl ... calm! Peacccceeee... girl! be caaaalmmmm...." The voices rasped at her.

Victoria opened her eyes again to see a massive black tail whipping around the room, crushing whatever it hit. Her bed was flattened and pieces of furniture littered the room.

She could feel it. She could feel this tail moving. She felt the tugging on her spine and the impact of the tail against whatever it struck. It was huge, impossible to know how long but at least four feet in thickness. She was still screaming.

Suddenly, a single blinding, pure command hit her.

STOP.

And, she did. This time she did fall to the ground and she felt her tail crash to the floor with her.

"... weak... heavy... her... can't... sssstilll too heavy... weak... can't command... her... weakenssss ussss..." The voices were more quiet in her head, as if from a great distance.

Victoria tried to move but it was difficult. She was still breathing fast and her heart hammered in her ears. Rather than trying to move again, she looked at herself in the mirror on the bathroom door. Her hair, her beautiful hair was all gone. There was a mass of pure black snakes covering her head, except for a streak of blood red ones down the middle. They hung limply around her, barely moving. With everything else, that was what struck her the hardest - she always loved her hair.

Her arms were in front of her and she could see where the black scales covered the tops of her hands and her whole forearm on both arms. Her fingernails were gone, replaced by thick black claws. She flexed her hand and watched the scales ripple down her forearms as the muscles contracted. She looked stronger. She had actual biceps now where she only had plain arms before.

As she watched, her tongue flicked out three times, curling up to touch her nose on the third time out. It was forked and rasped against the skin of her nose when it touched her.

She could see part of her back - it was mostly still her skin except for a wide patch of blood red scales running down her neck to her ass. Or, where her ass used to be. There were no ass cheeks or bulge to signify where they once were. She hadn't even been particularly proud of her ass but at least she had one. Now... now there were only smooth black scales in its place. From there, the tail began. She could see it coiled behind her.

Victoria wailed.

The voices whispered in her ears. "Calm... good... be... be calm girl... be... girl... calm... be calm... be good..." Over and over. They were louder than before but still weak.

Her breath hitched as she tried to talk. "I... I don't... I don't know what's hap...happening!" She sobbed over and over.

"Fooolissshhhh... coming... they are... are... they... coming... will come... foolisssshhhh..." Now there was a sense of urgency in the voices.

Victoria wiped the tears from her face. "Who? Who is coming?"

"Sssss... loud... tooooo loud... you were... come... they will come... coming now... thingsssss... you... find you... breaking thingsssss..." They told her. She could feel the snakes moving against her and each other. She could actually feel them touching each other. They weren't just separate creatures attached to her - she could feel what they felt.

She looked around the destroyed room. They were right. She was surprised the police weren't knocking on her door right now. She tried to push herself up and found she could, slowly. She wriggled what used to be her toes and watched as her tail unwrapped itself, sliding around and over. She felt the scales against each other but she could only feel the pressure and the coolness of them. When she thought of herself as kneeling, the part of her tail directly under where her ass used to be picked her up so her torso was vertical. Her tail coiled behind her and the floor creaked under its weight.

What could she do? She would be shot or worse if she tried to leave. She would never survive.

The snakes on her head writhed against each other. "Him...him... caaaall him... the man... man... callll..."

Rob. She could call Rob. He said he would help. He said he would. He could do something. He'd understand. He would do something.

Rob's card lay on the ground in front of the door. When she thought about walking, the length of tail below her torso pivoted and unraveled, sliding back and forth to bring her to the door. In her own mind she felt herself walking, felt her feet moving and walking to the door. She stood at least seven feet tall with just a bit of her tail holding her up. So much of her tail was still coiled behind her.

She grabbed the card and dialed the hotel phone. At least she could still talk properly.

Rob answered on the fourth ring. "Hello?"

Victoria almost cried when she heard his voice. "Rob?" She asked tremulously.

His voice was cautious in reply. "This is he. May I ask who is calling?"

"It's... it's Victoria. From last night? Do you remember the restaurant?" She asked, daring to hope.

"Victoria! Of course I remember! Are you okay? Are you feeling better?" He sounded genuinely concerned for her and she loved him in that instant. Her whole world had collapsed but he still cared.

"No... I... listen... could you come to my room? I need help. Room 322. Please hurry." She hung up quickly, not daring herself to talk more.

Victoria moved (she refused to think of it as slithering) back to the main part of the room. She caught sight of herself in the mirror again. Her torso was larger, stronger. She had a six pack for her abs and her shoulder muscles were huge. Her tits were definitely bigger and lay full against her chest. The snakes were unmoving on her head. In bad light she'd almost look like she had dreadlocks. Pure black dreadlocks with a strip or red color down the middle of her head.

In a sudden panic she looked for her vagina. How would she pee?! She found a small slit roughly where her pussy would be if she were still human. Her scales were so smooth and cool to her fingers. She got closer to the mirror and looked at the area, touching herself over and over.

As she did, a muscle she never had before worked and the slit grew, opening up. To her shame, she felt aroused. Her pussy was still there, bigger but still her pussy. Even the lips were there. She rubbed herself and felt her own juices. She felt warm and she was still soft inside. Soft and wet. Out of morbid curiosity she tasted herself and found that was the same - stronger smelling but still basically the same taste. Her new tongue flicked at her fingers eagerly.

She reached a hand around herself to feel where her ass used to be but her body automatically rotated itself ninety degrees to help. There was a similar slit where her asshole used to be so she assumed it still basically worked.

She touched her pussy again, fascinated by it. The feeling was different. Just the touch brought feelings of pleasure down her spine to the tip of her tail. The tip of her tail flicked in response.

"Monster." She told herself out loud. "I'm a monster." She stared at herself and watched as her tongue flicked out, as if under its own control.

She grabbed the hotel telephone, ripping it from the wall and threw it at the mirror. "MONSTER!" She screamed at herself.

Victoria beat her hands against the scales below her belly. It was like pounding on steel and she could only feel the force of her hands and nothing else. Her hand opened and she brought a talon against one of scales. Screaming wordlessly she tried to pry the scale off. It hurt badly as she flexed it, straining her muscles. The pain was similar to a dentist finding a nerve ending with a drill.

"Girl! ... sssstttuuu... giiirrlll.... sssstupid girl... girl ... girl ... stupid girl... ssssstupid!" The voices hissed at her. Her hair was alive and furious. She felt them sliding and moving against each other.

A loud knocking at her door stopped her. "Victoria?!" Came the yell.

"I can't." She whispered to herself. "I can't let him see this."

"Trussssstt.... he ... truuuusstt... usssss... fine... trussssttt... he will be ... truuuuustttt ... fiiine...." The snakes rubbed against her face, as if to calm her. She shook her head and they settled down against her.

"I'm... I'm coming!" She told him as she made her way to the door.

She hesitated with her hand at the latch. She couldn't do it. He'd run. He'd scream and that would be the end of her.

A sudden peace descended on her and she felt like she was in a dream. She saw her hand reach for and undo the latch. She watched herself pull the door open completely. Rob stood in the doorway, his shirt half-buttoned. Her hair was moving again, facing the man and weaving in an intricate pattern.

"Man.... come... sssson of man.... man... ssssson... come... come to usssss..." The voice was coming from her own throat now. Somehow she was repeating the voices she heard in her head.

"Wha...?" Victoria watched in a daze as Rob's eyes grew to pinpoints and his mouth hung open. He took a shambling step inside her room. Victoria's traitorous body moved back to allow him entrance.

The snakes suddenly hissed in surprise when a woman came around the corner. The woman glanced in the room and stopped, her eyes taking on a far away look.

"Too ssssstrong... sssssssstrong... too... tooo... ssstroooong... sssstrong...." Victoria felt herself say. The woman followed Rob into the room and Victoria's body closed the door behind them. They both followed her into the bedroom.

Victoria suddenly felt her control return and the snakes slumped against her head. "What did you do to them?!" She screamed.

The snakes lifted slightly from her. "Controoool... yoursssssss... control... yoursssss to control... yourssssss... command..."

Rob and the woman both stared at Victoria with no expression. They seemed small next to her. She wanted to cry or scream but who would listen? She picked up Rob's hand and he offered no resistance. "I'm... I'm sorry. I'll put you back when I can. I..." But she didn't know what else to say. She hugged him to her, his head just coming to her belly button.

"Victoria..." He whispered, but his voice was without emotion. He rubbed his head against her and she felt the heat from his face and hands against her scales. He seemed so warm compared to her. His hands slid over her body and she found the sensation erotic in a way she couldn't explain. His warm flesh slid and caught against her as he moved. She felt a small contraction below her as her muscles opened her up to him.

"Victoria..." He said again as he brought his mouth down to her opening.

She was shocked at what was happening. This wasn't what she wanted! "No, Rob, wait!" But his mouth was on her, licking the hot, wet opening. The pleasure was intense and she arched her back with her mouth open. No sound came out. His fingers pulled the sides of her pussy open further and he sucked on her lips. Victoria grabbed his hair and held him against her. Her tail coiled endlessly against itself as Rob sucked on her.

The unnamed woman dropped her mini skirt to the ground when she unzipped it. She was a tall pretty blonde girl with a fake tan. Her breasts seemed small and perky under her shirt. Her panties followed the skirt to the floor. The woman walked over to Victoria and hugged the side of her tail, rubbing herself on it. Her right hand rubbed the dark red scales of Victoria's back while her left hand found Victoria's cunt. She dipped her fingers inside.

"Nooooo..." Victoria moaned. She couldn't help herself. When the woman put her fingers inside her, a shockwave raged down her pussy to the tip of her tail. She rocked back and forth on her tail, biting her lip. Her left hand massaged her tit, tweaking the nipple.

Rob was trying to push her down to the ground but she was beyond strong; her tail was pure muscle and she herself was bigger than him. She flexed and brought herself down, pulling Rob gently down with her. The snakes on her head fanned themselves out on the carpet. Rob grabbed her right breast, holding it while he bit at the nipple of her left breast. Victoria moaned. The woman came over and presented herself to Victoria, offering her pussy for Victoria's pleasure. Victoria grabbed her by the hips and pulled her down against her mouth. Her tongue flicked up and into the woman. Even through the strange deadness of them both the woman couldn't stop herself from rocking her hips. A small moan even escaped her lips. "Mistress..." the woman whispered. Victoria kneaded the woman's ass with her talons, drawing blood.

Rob worked his way down Victoria's body, kissing her stomach, her belly button and the scales above her pussy. His mouth felt so hot against the cold black scales. He stopped to take his shirt off, calmly unbuttoning himself with no hurry. His pants followed and he sat astride her, naked. She basked in the warmth of his flesh. He pulled himself down and his dick rubbed against her pussy. Victoria shivered. She felt the snakes stirring against her head but paid them no mind.

Rob gripped Victoria around her hip with one hand and guided himself into her with the other. He was well endowed and thick but had no problems entering her. He hissed out quietly as she took his full length. Victoria's tail tried to tie itself in knots from the pleasure of it. Now he held onto her with both hands and leaned forward, wrapping his legs around her tail. Victoria never felt like this in her entire life. Her whole cunt felt like it was wired with electricity. She could barely lie still as he started thrusting into her. Her own tongue darted in and out of the woman above her, drinking the warm juices flowing from the woman's pussy.

Three of the snake heads caressed themselves against the woman's thigh, sliding over her smooth skin. One of them, a red one, opened its mouth and sunk its small fangs into the woman's flesh. The woman screamed in sudden orgasm, her legs and hips jerking against Victoria. Two small lines of blood trailed from the snake's mouth.

Victoria was distracted, not noticing what her own snakes were doing. She couldn't seem to concentrate on anything. All she knew was the building pressure in her cunt. Her entire tail felt like it was building an orgasm. She threw the woman off of her and grabbed Rob, pulling him close. He sped up and bit hard into the nipple of her right tit. She felt his mouth pulling and sucking at her nipple as he slammed into her again and again. He came first, his sperm jetting into her over and over but he didn't stop pounding her. "Victoria..." He whispered, close to her ear. Victoria's snakes were sliding over him, rubbing on him.

And, suddenly, her own orgasm slammed into her. Her tail whipped out, crushing the entertainment center, blowing it into pieces. Her tail wrapped itself in knots and flexed, rubbing against itself. Victoria shrieked and dug her hands into the ground, cutting into the floor with her claws. She couldn't remember anything after she came until she saw Rob standing near her, staring at her with his dead eyes. His dick hung limp, crusted over with his sperm and her juice. She would fix what happened to him. Whatever it took.

When she could move again, she pulled herself up. Her pussy had closed itself back into a slit but a trail of liquids oozed out of it. Rob fetched a hand towel without asking and wiped her off. Her slit opened to him again and he carefully cleaned her. She pushed him back when it looked like he might start again.

"Rob. I ... I need help. I need to get out of here." She told him, pulling his head up to look at her.

He didn't talk. He simply walked over to his pants and grabbed his cell phone. He dialed a number and spoke to the person that answered. His voice was back to the way it was before he came to her room but his eyes were still dead flat. "Hi! This is Rob Poole. Listen, I need access to the freight elevator to bring some presentation material up to my room. Yeah, just the code for it is great. Uh-huh. 5166. Right, got it."

He knelt before Victoria, bowing his head. "I have a van in the parking garage, mistress. I will take everything out of it and you can lie there comfortably. I will bring you to California and do whatever you need me to do."

"Rob, don't... Rob, stand up. It's 'Victoria', not 'mistress'. And..." But a cry stopped her and she looked over at the woman. She'd forgotten her.

The skin on the woman's face was cracking. Raw, red flesh showed through the cracks. Victoria could only watch in shocked silence. Rob glanced over without emotion.

One by one, the woman's fingernails popped off. She was curling into a ball and uncurling, her face a snarl of pain. The was a small cracking sound and then faint 'tic' noises as her teeth fell out. The woman swallowed some and spit the others out. Her bloody gums healed over quickly, leaving her toothless. Her eyebrows rubbed off when the woman turned over to rub her face against the carpet. When she turned back to her side, pale white skin had grown from small holes above her eyes. Her face elongated with a small 'pop!' sound. When she opened her mouth, her tongue unrolled out of it. A small cut on the tip of her tongue split it in two while it flattened.

The woman was rubbing her head over and over on the carpet. As she did, she left curls of her blond hair behind. She tried to bring her hands up to scratch or pull or do something but the skin from her armpit was grown down the side of her body, keeping her arms to her side. There were patches of skin showing through her hair and Victoria watched as the rest fell out when the woman's face flattened slightly.

Another line of skin grew down from her pussy, pulling her naked legs together. Her pussy lips are pulled out and up before being closed over. The woman thrashed and jumped as the line of skin locked her knees together. Mottled white skin grew in patches between the splits in her skin. It looked pebbled and pale in the light.

There were more cracking noises. The woman's head was thrown back, rotated ninety degrees on her neck to stare straight up. Her tongue was darting out ceaselessly. From the cracked, raw skin on her head, small scales were growing and now they were growing all over her body. The line of skin from her arms pulled and ripped the woman's shirt down the side as it connected both arms to her sides. Her bra strained and broke against the pressure. The webbing between her fingers grew out to seal the fingers together into one solid lump.

Victoria watched as lumps shifted below the woman's skin. Lumps where there used to be solid bones. The lumps moved and the skin of her arms and hands suddenly hung limp against her, turning her skin a deathly shade of white. The woman vomited blood and there were small bits of bone in the mess.

Now her whole body was connected as one piece, down to her toes. Thin white rubbery looking skin was growing from the cracks in her skin, growing to cover her body. The woman lay still, moving only slightly from side to side. She closed her eyes and when they opened again, they were amber with a black slit running vertically where her round pupil used to be. Small, baby fangs broke through the gums on the top of her mouth, dotted with clear liquid. They grew slowly as other tiny teeth grew along the gums.

The woman's bra hung limp against her chest, empty now. The fabric of her shirt made scratching noises against the growth of new skin.

In the sudden quiet there comes a noise like stretching rubber mixed with small rocks breaking. The woman's body stretched, her shoulders popping and pulled into her body. Patches of raw red skin are quickly covered in a milky white paper thin covering. There was more popping and the woman's slim hips broke, the skin hanging loose before being pulled as her feet stretch out. Her old shirt and bra settled against her shrinking chest.

More popping sounds were followed by a sound like thick liquid being poured and the woman's body stretched into a perfect tube shape, her feet coming to a single point. Her eyes closed but her tongue continued to flick in and out. Her lips puffed out around her mouth, pulling her limp and boneless nose flat against her face. Her face stretched, moving her eyes and nostrils toward the front of her face. The snake that used to be a woman opened her mouth to stretch her jaw.

There was no more cracking sounds but the woman continued to grow, pulling into herself as she did. From five feet thick, to two and then one foot thick. Her body convulsed in a wave from her head to her tail and then again the other way. Slowly, she slithered out from under her old clothes, curling herself in a stack near the heater. Her smaller eyes watched Victoria while her tongue darted from her mouth.

Victoria went to her, her eyes brimming with tears. She couldn't trust herself to talk so she reached her arm out to the snake. It raised its head to rub itself against her hand with its eyes closed.

"Mistress, we must go." Rob clothed himself, not caring what was happening with the other woman.

The snake uncoiled and slid next to Victoria, pressing against her. "Damn you." Victoria whispered but her own snakes are silent.

Rob left, walking to the end of the hallway. Victoria watched him type in the freight elevator password. When the large doors were completely open, Victoria took a deep breath and then, ran for it. At least, in her own mind she was running. In reality her tail undulated and she was lightning fast - she crashed into the side of the elevator before she realized what she'd done. The huge snake followed her but more slowly.

The freight elevator groaned under their weight and began its ponderous descent. Victoria could feel herself getting more and more nervous the longer it took. So many things could go wrong between here and the van Rob had waiting for her. Her tail thumped against the side of the elevator as she grew more agitated.

When the elevator stopped, Victoria pressed herself in the corner as much as she could. Rob took a step out and then walked around the elevator, checking for other people. When he was satisfied, he found his van and backed it up to the large double doors.

Victoria watched as Rob opened the back doors of the van. He stooped down and stepped in, tossing out boxes and expensive equipment. When the back was empty, he held the doors open for Victoria.

Victoria glanced out of the elevator and moved carefully. She was halfway to the van when she heard a sudden voice. "Hey! What the fu...!" She whipped her head around and her snakes were instantly up. She felt a pulse of... something and the man froze. He started a scream but it died on his lips as his skin turns from tan to light grey and then the dark grey of concrete.

"...usssss.... Ssssscared ussss..... know... ssssscared... didn't.... ssssssscared ... know... usssssssss..." Her snakes told her frantically.

She didn't even know who this man was.

"GODDAMMIT!" She yelled, loudly. The man was ten feet away but Victoria whipped her tail at him, catching him with the middle of her length. He shattered into a million pieces and her tail crumpled the car next to where the man stood. The car alarm beeped once before falling silent.

The snake that used to be a woman coiled itself in the back of the van. Victoria said a silent prayer for the unknown man before pulling herself in as well. It was a cargo van so there's thankfully enough room for her and no windows in the back. She asked Rob to turn on the heater after the engine roared to life.

Nobody challenged them as they leave.

It will be a long drive to California but Victoria doesn't mind. She needs the time for some soul searching. If this was her life now then, so be it. But, she would learn to control this. She would find a way to bring back Rob and, if she could, to help the poor nameless woman. She may look like a monster but she'd be damned if she'd become one.