This is a story about a 15 year old male human dreaming of turning into animals and then one day it happens for real as he turns into an eagle. This is a story I've been wanting to write for a while. Been posting it over on Royal Road. Will be posting until I catch up with my new posts there minus 10 chapters. If you like the story check out what I have there, love any reviews, follows, comments and such there if possible.

Royal Road Link: https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/1.....shadow-without

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“Mike, wake up. Time to go to school.” startles me awake. A light poke hits my side, and I swat at it half-asleep. “Skree!” is all that comes out instead of “let me go back to sleep.” Wait… was that just skree?! And why is my bedroom balcony door open? I shake my head, trying to glare at my mom. Instead, I turn and see Charlie a few feet away, laughing nervously but keeping his distance. I remember what an officer in Army Cadets once said: you aren’t responsible for what you do when someone wakes you up too fast in the morning. Shiners perches nearby, trying not to laugh.

Why was Charlie in my bedroom? Did we have plans together today? I lift my hands to rub my eyes but wince when my wings don’t bend that way. And a… glowing raven? I look around, and the memories hit me all at once. I groan as I look down at my “hand.” <So I guess yesterday wasn’t a dream, was it?> Ughhh, not sure whether to be happy or upset, I think as I give my wings a few flaps, trying to see if it’s still real.

Shiners shakes his head, chuckling as he repeats what I said to Charlie.

Charlie shrugs. “I was pretty sure it was a dream… I wasn’t expecting you to actually be an eagle.” I can’t help but give a small nod at that.

I give the best grumble an eagle can and ask, <Well, how did you even find out I’d turned into an eagle? Last I saw you, I was running from school, and you were in the classroom.>

Charlie shrugs as Shiners repeats my words. “I was going to continue the test. I figured I’d check in with the nurse after class to see how you were doing. Instead, I looked out the window just in time to see you running into the woods. Worried something worse was happening, I finished the test as quickly as I could, though I’m probably going to get a bad score, and then I followed you.” My throat twitches slightly as I try to gulp but it doesn’t work. That could have been bad if I turned into a leopard, or someone else saw me, I think nervously.

<You didn’t have to do that for me. I’m glad you know, but I would have been fine. That’s how you followed me. But it still doesn’t explain me being an eagle. And you seem rather calm about it.> I can only imagine how I’d react if I saw Charlie turn into an animal. A lot of AHHHH!!!! then running into a tree. While I try to act calm, the concern and weirdness I feel are just under the surface. The only thing keeping me from completely panicking is that Charlie and Shiners are here.

“By the time I got out, you were long gone. I did follow your tracks through the snow. Since few people had been out this way since the last snowfall, it was fairly easy to find your path off the trail. I took a couple of detours first.” Charlie takes a deep breath, showing that while he’s accepted it, he’s still a little rattled by the whole thing. “When I finally reached the fort, I could hear movement from inside and saw you move past the doorway and disappear. By the time I climbed into the fort, all I saw were your clothes on the floor before a large eagle jumped out the window and flew off.” There’s a look of wonder in his eyes, but also acceptance of what happened.

I give a full-body wince at his words. <I can only imagine how crazy that looked. Not sure how I’d react if I were him.>

Shiners finally speaks up for himself. <I wish I had noticed this. I could have helped him with it all.>

Charlie nods. “To be fair, while the thought of you becoming an eagle was in my mind, my first thought was that you jumped out the window naked. No idea why, but it seemed more reasonable than you turning into an eagle. After a quick look around, I had to accept that something weird had happened, especially after your dreams and how you acted Sunday.

“That’s when I went home, got you some food, and let your parents know that you would be staying with me. I didn’t know if I would ever see you again, or if I did, how much of your human self would still be there. But the last thing I wanted was to make things worse when you went home, if you ever could.” It was a lot to take in, but it let me relax a little bit.

Shiners gives a small sigh. <I haven’t told him yet that you probably won’t be turning human again for a while. I figured you might want to tell him yourself.> I nod my head, now feeling a little nervous.

I sigh deeply as best as an eagle can, which sounds more like a snort. I nod to Shiners before speaking. <It’s about going back to my family and turning human. I probably won’t be turning human again any time soon. Apparently I need to do something first, though Shiners doesn’t know what. But I’d like to try to let my parents know what happened to me. I was hoping that maybe with you and Shiners they’d understand. I don’t know how I could stay home without causing problems. Can’t have an eagle walking around, and I doubt my sister would be able to keep my secret. I know she wouldn’t do it on purpose, but it could slip out.> I keep rambling, too many worries on my mind.

Charlie stares at me for a few moments after hearing this. “Wait, hold on. You’re telling me you’re going to be an eagle for a while?”

<Sounds like it,> I say, wondering when I accepted all of this. I wanted to deny it, but it’s hard to deny the evidence as plain as the yellow banana I have for a nose. <But on a good note, I wonder if I can turn into the other animals I’ve been feeling. It’s quiet right now, but in the last few days, I was trying to turn into a panther. Maybe I can turn into a wolf and try my best to pass off as the new family pet, a wolf-dog. It would make it much easier for me to get around and be with the family… assuming they accept me. Though I have no idea how I would turn.> Saying all this finally gets some of the thoughts I’d been having out in the open. <How about we meet after school and discuss this some more? It’s probably getting close to the time school starts.> Having a plan makes it feel almost like a normal day.

Charlie thinks for a moment. “That could work. We’ll need to speak with your family today or tomorrow. But in the long term, being able to pose as a dog would be a good thing,” he says.

Shiners nods. <I can help him, or at least try. It’ll probably take a few days, but if you really focus, you should be able to. Your dreams imply you can turn into them, too.>

Charlie gives me a questioning look. “I’ve been meaning to ask… how exactly are you an eagle? I know it’s true because you’re acting like Mike, but come on, tell me, is it just a costume? You had those really weird dreams, yeah, but those were just dreams. Have you been able to do this for a while and just didn’t tell me? Just how is any of this even possible? If John or Frank told me about this, I’d think they were playing a joke or had gone insane,” he says.

I give a small nervous twitch at that. <Okay, you got me. This is just a costume, and Shiners is actually a stuffed doll. Can you help me out of this? It’s really hard to cram myself into a small space,> I say with a dry chuckle, hiding some of my concern.

Shiners gives me an indignant look. <Do I look stuffed to you?>

Charlie holds up his hands. “Hey, I’m not a mouse, so don’t bite my head off, or whatever you eat. I’m not accusing you, I just want to know your story,” he says with a nervous chuckle. “It’s hard for you, sure, but imagine me seeing it. How would you react if it was me?”

I groan at that and shrug. <Hey, I know about as much as you about what I eat, though I suspect it’s not hunting wild, dangerous apples,> I say, clicking my beak and holding up my talons for emphasis. <No, it’s something that just happened. Yesterday I dreamed of meeting an eagle, and when she touched me, I turned into what you see. I flew from the nest, and the next thing I knew, I was flying for real and crashed into the snow, stunned and too cold for it to be a dream.

<And no, before you ask, I wasn’t hurt, just confused. I don’t know why I turned into this eagle, or what any of it means. It’s both exciting and scary. I have no explanation for any of this, or why it’s happening. I just know that I’m an eagle now, or I’m having a mental breakdown. Honestly not sure yet.> Saying this out loud finally lets me admit to others what I’ve been thinking and feeling.

Charlie frowns. “I can imagine it’s scary and exciting, but you’ve got me and Shiners, and with luck, your parents will be there too. Whatever happens, we’ll figure it out, assuming I haven’t gone completely loco,” he half-jokes.

Shiners lets out a low caw. <You’re both a little loco, but that’s just because you humans wear those weird removable feathers and fur.> I give my head a small shake at that.

We all nod as Charlie stands up. “Well, I should get to school. You two want to follow me?” he asks.

I nod. <It’ll give me a chance to get more flying practice. Have you told anyone else, like Frank or John? I have no idea how they’d react.> I hope he hasn’t, maybe in time but too many too fast if they did.

“No, I haven’t, and it’s probably best for now that we don’t. The fewer people that know, the less trouble it might cause. At least for now,” he says. “I know it bothers you, but we can tell them in time. Though I’m not sure how readily they’d believe it either.”

<Maybe if things don’t go well with my parents, we can let them know. That way I have some backup. But for now, yeah, let’s not tell,> I say. It’s frustrating, as I hate hiding from my friends, but what else can we do? The more people we tell, the bigger the chance of complications.

Shiners glances between the two of us. “Whatever works for you. I barely understand you humans half the time, so don’t ask me for advice on secrets.”

Charlie gives Shiners an odd look before laughing. “Yeah… that’s rather fair.”

Charlie climbs out and gives me a thumbs-up as I step to the doorway. A wave of vertigo hits me. The ground looks so much farther away than it used to. I shake my head, and after a moment I finally drop from the edge after a moment’s hesitation and beat my wings hard to gain height, the vertigo fading once I’m fully in the air. With a few flaps, I’m above the trees. The joy of flight returns as I give a skree of excitement.

Shiners follows after me, his wings beating steadily beside mine. <Try to glide while you can. Rising air from the ground helps lift you. I’m not sure where you’d find it here, but I’ve seen eagles use it all the time. It’ll help you glide longer and save energy.>

I give a small nod. <I remember hearing about thermals in school. Hot air rising or something like that, it makes sense it would help a bird.> I circle above, flapping more than I need to as it feels in my head like I might fall, keeping watch on Charlie below. He looks up occasionally to smile, and we soon reach the school. I swoop down carefully and pull back up above the tree line, giving a skree, my best attempt at saying “have a good day.” It obviously doesn’t come out right. He gives a thumbs-up and goes inside.

Shiners calls back over the wind. “We forgot to mention, he left us more meat at the fort. We should eat first, then get back to flying practice and maybe start figuring out how to get you shifting into something else.”

I give another glance toward the school I may never return to. Even if I become human again, I might have already aged out. With a wistful look, I turn and fly back toward the fort.