Song of Change

Joey fiddled with the latest arcade cabinet chassis that was successfully recovered after a routine internet examination. He was especially happy with this find, a classic “Punch-Out!” machine in solid condition, at least on the outside. The internal workings needed some adaption, however, to properly run.

He wiped his brow as he fiddled with the wiring, the close quarters within the garage, in-between every other cabinet, providing a significant heat even with the ceiling fan. It was exhausting work, as much as he enjoyed it, and he figured that he didn’t have to do the full overhaul at once.

Then Joey heard the front door open, and a voice call out. “I’m home!” they said, and Joey smiled. Ally was back.

He dusted off his hands against his pant legs, before removing himself from his project. He walked back inside the house to greet his girlfriend. He was particularly surprised by a box she held.

“I take it the thrift shopping was a success?” Joey asked, giving Ally a gentle hug and a kiss on the cheek as a suitable greeting.

“Definitely,” Ally agreed, showing off the box in better detail. Joey wasn’t quite sure what was being advertised, as all the writing was in Japanese. What he could glean from the box was that it contained a rounded black machine, almost like a rice cooker. But it seemed to have what appeared to be speakers on both side of it, so Joey could hazard a guess.

“A music player?” he theorized. Ally tilted her head, coy.

“Yes and no,” she said, setting the box down. She started to open it up, lifting the black device out soon after, an exact match to the label, fortunately. “It’s actually a special karaoke machine.”

“Really?” Joey asked, impressed. But he noticed something about the machine. “I don’t see a microphone on it, though.”

“That’s what makes it special,” Ally explained. “That nice goth shopkeeper said it’s ‘touch free’ karaoke, so we can sing together without using a mike.”

“Heh, sweet,” Joey smiled, excited for the possibilities. He wasn’t much of a singer, he felt, or at least not a professional. And Ally tended to be on the shy side. But it didn’t matter; they were singing together on their own terms, for fun. Two lovebirds, living in the moment. That, he felt, was what mattered.

“Let’s give it a test run,” Joey suggested, and Ally agreed. She didn’t waste any time plugging in the karaoke machine into the closest outlet in the living room. The front lights glowed with life, a touch-screen activating on the front of the console. It seemed to show the name of the song, as well as a small graphic indicating the applicable album, where relevant. A typical karaoke menu, with an important distinction.

“What the heck?” Ally asked, tapping the screen. “Joey, check this out.”

“What is it?” Joey asked, observing what Ally had seen. Ally gently put her finger near what caught her eye, namely the number of songs. Instead of a specific value like he expected, he was shocked to see an infinity sign. “How is that possible?”

“Maybe it automatically updates constantly or makes new music as it generates?” Ally offered as a theory. She shrugged though. “Weird either way. So we should probably go through the ‘setup’ procedure…”

She pointed now to the notification in the top right corner that was flashing with the phrase “setup” on it. No doubt to adjust the system to their specifications. However, the moment she physically pressed the button, the device suddenly started to emit a high-pitched noise. It physically hurt to listen to.

“Augh!” Joey called, clapping his hands over his ears. “Turn it off!”

“On it!” Ally called, slapping the machine as best as she could with her concentration disoriented from the noise. She eventually turned off the machine entirely, and the noise stopped. Both Ally and Joey lowered their hands slowly.

“Thank goodness,” Joey remarked, although he could still hear the ringing in his ears. “Not sure what all that was about though…”

“It definitely said ‘setup’, right?” Ally asked, unsure. “I’m not just imagining things?”

“Maybe it was a mistranslation.” Joey didn’t seem too worried about the confusion. Although…He shivered across his body, the tingling sensation feeling like it had spread beyond just his ears. It was the oddest feeling, but he felt a bit lighter at the sensation. Softer, even.

He hardly noticed Ally staring at Joey in outright concern. Eventually he lifted his head to see.

“What?” he asked. Except his voice was much lighter than it originally was. “Hang on…”

“That’s what I was going to tell you,” Ally said, pointing at Joey carefully. “Your body…”

“What about it?” he asked, looking over himself. He noticed a growing formation of flesh on his chest, two mounds, growing gradually. Were those…?

“Eep!” Joey called in shock, clutching his growing mounds in surprise. “What in the world? Am I becoming a girl?”

“I think so,” Ally nodded. She could tell that Joey was more stunned about the sudden experience than he was fearful of it. After all, it wasn’t every day that he would undergo full-body gender change within the span of minutes due to a malfunctioning karaoke machine, which is a phrase she thought she would never come up with. “Are you okay?”

“I mean, it doesn’t hurt…” Joey remarked, slowly calming down. His hips were creaking a small amount, reshaping to a more feminine curveature, as were his legs, becoming smoother and more toned, yet still with muscle.

“Do you need a hand?” Ally asked, starting to approach. “I can—”

She suddenly tripped, landing against Joey’s body, who caught her with some effort. With surprise, Ally looked back at the ground where she walked, certain she didn’t collide into anything in her path. Her eyes widened, as did Joey’s.

It was the strangest sight, stranger than Joey’s own predicament. Where Ally’s legs were, was instead a gradually merging singular limb, tapering at a point. It was reminiscent of a snake’s tail, in fact, thick and yet smooth. She hesitantly tried to move it, managing to gently whip it a little back and forth.

“Joey, I think I know who we’re becoming, but not exactly why,” Ally added, watching as the very tip of her new tail started developing tiny blue and white scales, spreading from the point of origin at a rapid pace. She looked up to Joey with curiosity…and was that excitement?

Joey idly brushed the hair from his eyes, although he did feel that the way his hair moved was vastly different. Nor was it his original color, the regular brown long hair brightening up into a vibrant pink color. His skull reshaped under his skin, not with any sensation of pain, but one of pleasure, leaving Joey smiling as his—rather, her—face sunk into place. She could feel her lips plump further, lipstick already forming across, gently cascading along the surface, a pure red color.

“I…I think so,” Joey said with pure awe…before grinning at Ally, who grinned back. How many fantasies crossed their minds in the past? All the characters they had developed, the universe they had gifted life, all of it seemed unobtainable. And yet, in the flesh, was the answer to their dreams, the very characters they seemed closely attached to taking shape as their new bodies. For Ally, she was gaining the attributes of her own sculptor naga gorgon, Azura. For Joey, the changes were far more encompassing and matched a more ‘ideal’ form she wished she could take in the past: Ruby, her Uruseiyan idol. A perfect pair for the two, now come to life.

“This is incredible,” Joey added, watching Ally’s changes for now. Her hair seemed to me writhing more and more, solidifying into a stronger form. Namely, it seemed like strands of Ally’s hair were taking life of their own, resembling small snakes that coiled around idly. They, too, possessed blue and white scales like the kind that adorned her new tail. Further, those scales had spread a significant amount, having gone across her tail, creeping up her waist and chest. She could feel the scales under her clothing, the smooth texture gently resting upon the cloth shirt she wore. Her jeans had already torn prior when her legs had fused but were in the process of warping into a skirt shape that properly fit a naga.

“This is like our comics!” Ally commented, turning her body around to get a better look at herself. Just as well, as her clothing continued to adapt itself to fit her shifting race, her shirt and skirt fusing into one single article, fading into a uniform dark grey leotard that covered most of her body until it reached her arms. The neckline had raised into a turtleneck, curling around Ally’s neck and providing a comfortable shape. She gently brushed her fingers against the neckline, watching as another substance was forming on the front of her outfit, this one pure white, It spread across the front, far lighter and completely flat as compared to her traditional wear, an apron, complete with multiple pouches on the lower end. A set of strings stretched from the top of the apron, twisting itself behind Ally’s neck, for security; a similar one stretched from the midpoint to curl around her lower back. Anchored into place. A true artist’s apron.

Joey felt her clothes change as well, the casual clothing she had previously worn also fusing into one entity. This, however, was just the start; Joey could feel it splitting into pieces once more, lighter than Ally’s appearance, an airy dress for her to wear. It turned bright white now, the bulk of the lower half off to one side of her legs. The dress naturally covered everything important, although one of her legs was entirely bare, the other more likely to be covered. It stretched up until Joey’s newfound breasts, before stopping shortly after covering the nipple region. It was both modest and somewhat exposed—which was fine, seeing as Joey was simply happy to have the additional assets to begin with.

She felt her arms tingle a small amount, as new fabric began to materialize along them, covering her hands and stopping midway between her shoulders and elbows. She flexed her fingers, feeling how dexterous it was, the dainty digits easily bending under the white silk cloth.

Joey gave a content sigh, closing her eyes as she did so. When they reopened, her original blue eyes had given way to pink, matching her hair. A choker appeared around her neck, also white, but with a pure pink heart in front of the throat region. There was movement amongst her hair; gently moving her hand through it, she felt two smaller nubs on top, her new tiny horns. Fitting for an Uruseiyan, she felt. Her lower back, too, felt tense, and her dress moved with a new growth directly underneath. Ever so slowly, a small tail had grown, nothing like Ally’s massive naga tail, but a tail, nonetheless. It was far thinner, ending at a pink point, resembling another heart.

Eventually the two stood in place, looking upon themselves and each other, admiring the many additions they have gained, the new forms they had undertaken.

And shortly after their preening, they embraced with utmost passion. Their lips locked, kissing, a sign of their eternal love for each other.

“I couldn’t think of a better gift,” Joey said. “I’m actually Ruby…”

“And I’m Azura,” Ally nodded back. “Although…I hadn’t actually planned any of this. This was a bonus.”

Joey inspected the source of their changes, the karaoke machine that lay dormant since Ally had quickly shut it off. Curious, Joey poked the power button once more. What had baffled her previously now seemed intimately familiar, and she, as well as Ally, understood how to operate the device instinctively.

“I guess that was what the ‘setup’ thing did,” she shrugged. “Anyway, I know that I was building that arcade cabinet before, but…”

Ally gently allowed her tail to curl around Joey’s legs, a form of hugging that she playfully engaged in. She giggled. “But you want to break in that beautiful voice of yours, right?” she asked. “And I don’t blame you, either. I’ll join you in a duet.”

Joey looked to Ally, pure love in her eyes. “We’re always a duet,” she said.

They sang together for hours, simply enjoying each other’s company. It was all they needed.