Collab story: The Apprentice

The warmth flowed through them as they lay, relaxed on the soft, warm sands of the beach. The sound of waves touching on the shore mingled with the distant sounds of children playing in them and the shrill cry of gulls flying ahead while looking for their next meal.

The two girls lay relaxed on the beach, one tanning her pale skin while the other, whose skin was covered by a light yellow fur, merely enjoyed the warm, clear weather and blazing sun.

“I love you, Carla,” the rabbit girl suddenly said, turning her head over.

Carla blinked a few times. It took her mind a few moments to truly register what Melissa had said. She hadn’t known Melissa Cassini for that long, they had just met in the past year. While they were friends, to hear her blurt out something like that out of the blue confused Carla.

“Melissa, what are you talking about?” She asked, sitting up and looking over.

Melissa’s eyes seemed to stare forward a little. She opened her mouth, repeating the phrase loudly. “I love you, Carla!”

Carla shook her head. “Melissa? What are you doing? You want everyone to hear you?” she asked in response, her skin turning a flush red as she stared, confused, at her friend.

Melissa stood up, looking to the sky before yelling loudly, “I love you, Carla Wildheart!”

Carla’s eyes widened as she blushed. Her look of shock quickly turned to one of anger as she got to her feet, putting her sandals on and grabbing her towel. “You idiot,” she responded in anger as she began to storm off, leaving her friend behind.

The yelling had gotten the attention of several others at the beach. A pair of girls nearby snickered as a group of guys stared blankly at the irate girl. Carla could feel their eyes on her as she blushed deeply, unable to fathom what had gotten into Melissa.

Melissa just stared at Carla as she walked off. After a few moments, she lurched forward, rubbing her head. A woman, unfamiliar to Melissa, was standing behind her. “That wasn’t very nice of your friend,” she said with a thin smirk on her face.

Melissa blinked, looking around, confused. “W-wha?” she managed to stammer out, not quite sure what was happening
.
The woman nodded, “Well, you were talking to your friend, and she just stormed off, calling you an idiot as she left.”

Melissa blinked. She didn’t remember any of it, but judging how far Carla was away from her, she knew there had to have been some truth in the statement. Melissa grabbed her things and began running off after Carla.

“Hey, Carla, wait up!” she yelled, running after Carla. Carla ignored her as Melissa caught up. “Hey, Carla!”
“Melissa, go away, you’re embarrassing me!” Carla snapped back.

Melissa paused, blinking a little as she watched her friend storm off. A woman behind Melissa shook her head. “Tsk tsk, that’s not anyway for friends to treat each other, is it?”

Melissa turned her head, looking back at her. She had short, light brown hair, a lot like Melissa’s, an ample figure, and was wearing a rather loose sundress. “What do you mean?” she asked, not expecting a random stranger to be paying such close attention to what she was doing.

The woman nodded. “Well, she didn’t even want to give you a chance to explain. Seems like it’s a rather mean way to treat a friend, doesn’t it?”

Melissa blinked, nodding. “Yeah… but she’s just, I don’t know, upset about something. It’d be better not to bother her.”
The woman shook her head. “That’s not very friend like, is it?”
Melissa paused, thinking about the question. She didn’t know who she was, but the woman seemed to make some sense. “No… it isn’t. I mean, yeah, she’s upset, but still…”
The woman put her hand on Melissa’s shoulder. “I’ll bet she’s done things that upset you, hasn’t she? Have you ever responded that way?”

Melissa shook her head. “No… and she’s done a lot worse! Like that time she turned me into her lingerie and…” she stopped dead in her tracks, looking back at the woman. She knew she had just said something she wasn’t supposed to, and the entire idea of transformations wasn’t something she should go off blabbering about to strangers.
The woman smirked. “Oh? She turned you into her lingerie?”
Melissa put her hands over her mouth, blushing. “N-No, I didn’t mean that!”

The woman patted Melissa’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, sweetie. I understand.”

Melissa tilted her head, a little confused. “Y-You do?”
The woman grinned, nodding. “Yes. You don’t want to reveal what your friend is capable of doing,” she explained, idly twirling a strand of Melissa’s hair.

Melissa nodded. “Y-yeah, that-that’s right,” she responded. She didn’t know this woman, but for some reason, she felt a little at ease with her, like she might understand.

The woman smiled. “She… can alter her form, can’t she?”
Melissa blushed, nodding and looking down. “Y-yeah…”
She began to rub Melissa’s shoulder. “And she can change other’s forms, can’t she?”

Melissa nodded again. “Yes…” she said, looking sheepishly up at the woman as she gulped.

The woman smiled. “How would you like a chance to get back at her?”
Melissa’s eyes widened. There was a tiny sparkle in them as she looked up into the woman’s eyes. “G-get back? Like revenge?”
The woman nodded. She waved her hand in front of Melissa and a small arc of light appeared in the trail. Melissa’s eyes widened as she looked, mesmerized at what she just did. “Exactly, my child.”

Melissa nodded. The woman was easily in her 30s and had just made light dance across her fingers, so she didn’t mind being called a child by her as much as she normally might. “Y-yeah!” she responded, excitedly.

The woman smiled, looking up at Carla, who was now quite a distance ahead of them. She smiles over at Melissa, squeezing her shoulder a little. Suddenly, they found themselves right behind Carla. She held her hand outwards towards Carla, who seemed to freeze in place, She felt a sharp chill running down her back.

Melissa’s eyes widened as Carla began to shrink down. Her skin began to lighten, turning opaque as it took on a red tint. What looked like a thin, white stick began to extend down from her back. Carla’s eyes widened briefly before they glazed over, taking on a light pink as they froze in place. The woman smiled as she walked over to where Carla was. She bent over, reaching down with one hand and picking up a dark pink colored lollipop which still bore a marked resemblance to Carla.

She walked over to Melissa, smirking a little as she handed it to her. Melissa blinked, taking it. She blushed, looking up at the woman. “Y-You want me to eat this?’

The woman laughed a little. “Well, it’d be a waste to throw her away, wouldn’t it?”

Melissa nodded, slowly raising the sucker to her mouth. She licked it, smiling a little at the cherry flavor. She blushed, smiling up at the woman. “She tastes good.”

The woman smiled, patting Melissa’s head. “You like that, then?” she asked, although she knew the answer.

Melissa nodded her head happily. “Yeah, and it was really cool how you did it too,” she smiled up. “I’ve never really seen anything like it.”

The woman tilted her head. “Oh?” she responded in a bit of a mock surprise. She snapped her finger, which made several small sparks shoot from them. “You’ve never seen magic before, dear?”

Melissa shook her head, continuing to suck on the candy. “N-No, I mean, I’ve seen like, fake magic, but not anything like that.”

The woman smirked. “My dear, just because it’s on stage doesn’t mean it’s fake,” she responded, looking down and responding.

Melissa’s eyes widened. “I didn’t mean anything like that, I mean, well, I’ve never seen anything like you just did,” she explained, hoping she didn’t offend the woman.

“It’s alright, dear,” the woman said, smiling. “Most people haven’t really seen magic.”

Melissa nodded. “It was really impressive, ma’am…” she said sheepishly, trying not to sound too childish.

The woman looked the bunny girl over a little, smirking. “You know, you remind me a little of myself when I was that young.”

Melissa looked up at the woman. “What? Really?”

The woman nodded. “Sure, you’re a little naïve, but imaginative and willing to learn.”

Melissa nodded, looking down. “Thanks, I suppose.”
She grinned, rubbing her ears a little. “ perhaps, you might want to learn?”

Melissa’s eyes widened. She looked up at the woman, her eyes sparkling a little. “R-Really?”


The woman nodded. “I like you, you have potential. The question is, do you have the desire?”

Melissa jumped up, nodding. “Yes! I want to learn!”

The woman grinned. “Very well, that settles it. Assuming, of course, that you are truly devoted to the path of an apprentice,” she responded, looking down at Melissa.

“Y-yes!” Melissa responded enthusiastically. She thought for a moment, thinking only of what she saw the woman do.

The woman smirked, “You better spit out that stick, child.”
Melissa blinked, not even realizing that she still had the stick in her mouth. She nods, pulling it out, realizing that the candy was all gone. For a brief moment, she forgot that Carla was ever on the stick as she idly tossed it onto the ground. The woman held out her hand for Melissa, smirking. Melissa took a deep breath and nodded, taking the woman’s hand.

Next thing Melissa knew, she was in a small, circular room. The woman was standing there, looking down at Melissa. She reaches over to a small shelf, taking out a piece of paper and a very ornate looking pen.

“W-What’s that?” Melissa asked, a little nervous.
The woman smirked. “Your contract. You sign this, and I’ll train you.”

Melissa took it in her hand and looked down. There were clauses and disclaimers and fine print littered throughout. She caught something about leaving for extended periods of time and another disclaimer about not being responsible for pain, suffering, or accidental death. There was a lot to the contract, but she didn’t care. There was something about the woman, something almost intoxicating. She took the pen and took a deep breath, signing her name on the bottom.

The woman grinned, taking the contract and examining it. “Melissa Cassini,” she read aloud as she looked Melissa over and grinned. “Your life is about to change.”

Melissa looked down, blushing a little and nodding. “Y-yeah… hey, umm… miss… I don’t think I know your name…”
The woman smirked. “Oh? I’m Mrs. Ephrihim,” she explained with a slight smirk in her voice.

Melissa blinked. “Ephrihim?” she repeated, a little confused, not knowing if that was her proper name, her surname, or what.

She nodded in response. “Yes, but all those close to me call me by my nickname. I’m Erica.”