Once Cat Ears, Please

Doctor Stein also did a fantastic job, the whole team I put together was great!

We didn't make any mistakes, and everything had been checked for legality by my lawyers beforehand. There is nothing that you can really accuse me of!

That's just to clarify, right?

Of course, I had accompanied Katja intensively during her transformation process. We had become friends in the meantime, after all, and I liked her.

This went so far as to even offer to move in with me and my husband after her transformation.

* * *

When I was able to visit her for the first time after surgery, nothing had prepared me for the shocking sight.

I had known that she could not lie normally in a bed after the operation, but when I saw her hanging freely and upright in the room, I was shocked.

Various attachments and wires led from the rotating and swiveling frame directly to various cuffs on her limbs, and probably also to an attachment of her torso, though I could not see this.

In addition, she also looked terrible. She still had remnants of this disgusting red disinfectant on her face, which could not be properly removed because of the bandages. However, I could only see the mouth and eye area of her face, her nose was also still covered by a large plaster. Above, from the bandages protruded her new ears, also on them still adhered to this red stuff, which made the pretty fur look bloody.

A drip was connected to her right arm. On the side of the holding frame was a collection container for her excretions, and two tubes disappeared under a kind of sheet that hung over her and covered her body reasonably well.

One had cut an opening for her head and it was held together at the sides by strings. If it had been white instead of sky blue, it could have been part of a Halloween costume.

Nevertheless, I overcame myself to smile warmly.

"Katja, how are you? You look quite fresh again."

Her pale blue eyes looked a little tired, but she smiled.

"Sofie, nice of you to come and visit! Quite well, so far, I think."

I placed the flowers I had brought on a tray and sat on the edge of the unused bed opposite.

I had to look up at her because her feet, held a little apart, were hanging a good 30 centimeters above the floor.

"I hope you don't have cold feet?", I tried to joke.

Her smile seemed sincere.

"Don't you get some when you see me like this?"

I had to swallow involuntarily at the question, but immediately caught myself again.

"Not at all! I will go through with this as well! I knew it wasn't going to be easy. And I have already invested too much to give up my desire yet!"

Katja looked at me seriously, then blinked approvingly with both eyelids at the same time. Her neck corset prevented any head movement.

"What does Doctor Stein say, how long will you have to hang like that?"

"About three to four more weeks and I'll be able to sleep in a normal bed again."

I nodded and stood up. Slowly I stepped closer to her and looked up into her eyes.

"Can I look at it?"

"My hands are tied, so to speak, I could hardly stop it, could I?" she joked.

Slowly I walked around the rack, taking care not to get too close to the disgusting container. With all my might, I blanked out the fact that I, too, would be connected to such catheters.

Then, standing behind her, I slowly lifted the sheet.

Unfortunately, it was a complete disappointment. Her tail was still completely hidden under her bandages and plasters. Only in places fur was visible.

Disgruntled, I dropped the hem of her 'costume' back down and went back to her front.

"Unfortunately, still hidden under your bandages. You really make it exciting, I must say!"

"I'm pretty wound up right now too, don't you think?" she grinned.

"How does it even feel to be," I searched for the appropriate term, "attached like that?"

"Tied up fits better. Is like when I once had bondage sex. Only not as satisfying! But otherwise it's actually more comfortable than it might look. When I'm expecting visitors, I hang more or less upright, usually I hang horizontally on my back. Hence the monitor above me. But what's really frustrating is that I can't turn my head until the nerves heal. That makes watching movies tedious. Also, if something itches, I can't scratch it. And right now, especially around the operated areas, it itches terribly."

"Should I ring for the nurse?"

"No, I can do it myself, no problem. I have to endure it. You know, when my arms were lengthened, it was much harder in a way. But you don't want to have your arms lengthened, you had said."

"No. I'm going to be more of an upright cat person, David didn't want too many changes on me. Although I could definitely see myself doing it."

"You've been really lucky with David, I think. My boyfriend broke up with me when I told him what I was up to. He roundly declared me crazy. And we had already been living together for four years."

"Yes, I think it's great how David supports me. Also that he so willingly funded the research. However, I know him well enough to know that he will find ways to profit from it as well. I think right now he's already negotiating with Doctor Stein, for a whole chain of clinics. He has realized that there is a lot of profit potential in this area."

Katja looked sad at this moment, only seconds later I remembered that she was suffering from financial problems. Her modeling career hadn't gone so well, and she didn't have a second financial mainstay. That's why she had been so happy to be the first test subject, since I had promised her a lavish remuneration.

"How about your ears, are you hearing worse or better with them?"

"Unfamiliar. The sound reaches my ears differently. And the doctors think that if I can also move my ears properly later, it will take some time before I can locate exactly where a sound is coming from."

This had already been explained to me, so I just nodded in agreement.

After that, we chatted a bit more about other topics until I finally had to leave.

"Do you need anything else? Can I bring you something tomorrow?"

"No, not at the moment, thank you very much!"

"Then I want to go look for another vase. I hadn't thought there were no flower vases here. That's what happens when only men plan a clinic!"

"Yes, men!" laughed Katja in agreement. "Thanks!"

* * *

Katja recovered very quickly from the surgery. In fact, it took only a little more than two weeks until she could lie in a normal hospital bed again, but only sideways or on her stomach because her tail was still sensitive.

Then the rehab began.

I was allowed to be there when Katja was allowed to stand up again for the first time. For this I had brought her a special bikini, which was tailored in the back to fit her tail.

However, she herself had few inhibitions about walking around naked.

"I've always loved walking around naked!" she explained to me once when we got to talking about it. "Why should I be ashamed of my body? Cats don't do that either."

I myself enjoyed, admiring foreign looks on my body, but completely naked, directly in front of strangers, I still felt insecure and vulnerable. On the other hand, the idea of being presented naked like an animal, in a cage, quite excited me.

It was a fur bikini, matching her gray and white tabby tail and ears. And she looked adorable in it.

The rehab consisted mainly in the fact that she now had to learn to move her tail and her ears according to her will. Because of her altered hearing, she also suffered somewhat from balance problems, so at first she always had to hold on to something.

Her tail was sized just right so that the tip did not reach the ground when she stood upright.

The tests for sentience had been surprisingly positive. Katja could feel with her tail.

And when I stroked along the tail, Katja got slight goosebumps and had to giggle.

"Don't do that, I'm sensitive about that!"

"How does it feel, what do you feel?"

Katja blushed a little.

"It feels like you are lightly stroking my butt. But I can't pinpoint where you're touching yet. I don't know how to describe it."

I reached for her ears and stroked them.

"And this"

Immediately the ears twitched involuntarily and Katja blinked her eyes.

"It tickles even more, but it also feels like touching my ears. There doesn't seem to be much change in the feel. Except it feels a little different with fur."

The door opened, and to my surprise, Doctor Stein came in. I had not known that he was in the research clinic, but expected him to be working in his own clinic, as he had been the last few days.

"Good morning, ladies!" he greeted with a smile.

Then he stepped up to Katja and examined her closely.

"Hello Kitty-Kat! How are you doing today? Any problems?"

To my amazement, Katja blushed a little when the doctor looked at her so thoroughly from all sides. Something I didn't know from her. As far as her body was concerned, she was anything but shy.

"No, Frank, just like the day before yesterday, everything is fine. I don't have any more pain either."

Surprised, I looked at him.

"You were here the day before yesterday, too?"

"Of course! I don't want to miss anything, and I also want to be sure that Katja is absolutely fine," he replied, smiling mischievously.

That he had also been here two days before, I heard with some surprise, because there was actually no reason for him to continue accompanying Katja's rehab. He received all reports immediately, could also join in the examinations via live connection when he was sitting in his own clinic office. There was no need to take the hour-long flight. However, when I saw the looks with which the two of them looked at each other, a light came on and inwardly I began to smile. They were still keeping their shape, but I was sure that there was a spark between them.

I cleared my throat to bring attention back to my presence.

"Um, Frank, when do you think I can undergo the transformation?"

Immediately his gaze broke away from Katja's and he turned to me.

"Well, Sofie, we should wait another two months to be sure and see if there are any problems. However, at the moment there is not the slightest indication of it. I myself am amazed at how smoothly Katja's body has taken the changes. But now let's see how things are progressing. Katja, to what extent can you already move your tail?"

Katja turned a little to the side and presented her tail.

"If I concentrate, I can already do this."

Her tail whipped back and forth all at once. The tip whipped across Frank's stomach, who winced in fright.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to. I don't have it under control like that yet!"

Frank laughed.

"Everything is good, Katja! Even fantastic! You are really extraordinary!"

Immediately Katja turned a little red again, and to my further amazement, and obviously to Frank's amazement, her tail lifted up to her shoulder and twitched its tip. Even Katja was surprised by this movement.

"Oh, how come? I wasn't going to move that just now, was I?"

Frank quickly recovered from his stupor.

"That, Katja, is absolutely fantastic. More than I dared to hope for in my wildest dreams. It worked: your tail is able to display your emotions!"

* * *

The next few weeks I stayed mostly at the clinic and spent almost all the time with Katja, except for the time when Frank was there. Then I always found suitable excuses to leave the two of them alone.

Frank was divorced and Katja was single. Perfect.

I talked to David on the phone every day. Unfortunately, his schedule did not allow him to visit us. But he also followed Katja's progress with great interest.

Katja learned better and better to move her tail and ears. The movements also became more intuitive, more natural. So she already turned her ears in the direction of sounds she wanted to concentrate on.

And her tail movements reflected her mood more and more often.

However, not like cats, which irritated me a little at first.

However, this was also logical, because we humans had no cat genes. And the involuntary body reactions were partly deeply anchored in our genes.

Our distant ancestors with tails probably had a completely different tail language than dogs or cats.

Therefore, I began with Katja to train her tail posture accordingly, so that they were more like those of a cat. It was like learning a foreign language, but physically.

And in a way, it was also dressage.

"Sofie, you look like an animal trainer to me. The only thing missing is a whip or crop!" complained Katja after I had repeatedly admonished her not to bob her tail up and down when she was happy.

"If that helps you control yourself better, I'll bring a riding crop tomorrow!", I laughed.

Katja also joined in the laughter.

"No, never mind. Whips are rather not for me."

She turned her back to me again and moved her tail tip a little.

"That better?"

"Clearly, yes!", I confirmed.

Katja had only the bikini briefs on, but not the top. As much as this permissiveness had irritated me at first, I got used to it in the meantime.

In fact, I had already discussed it with David, and he found the idea quite appealing if I too would then walk around naked at home, even when visitors came.

Although I had protested loudly, I was clearly aware of my excitement.

David was dominant in our relationship, and most of the time I liked it when he made the decisions. However, I often had a mind of my own. Quite the cat.

Also with the dressage of our cheetah, it went not only with praise. Sometimes limits had to be shown. David could be very strict in that regard and show me my limits. I loved that about him.

And then I snuggled up to him like a cat.

"Sofie, are you even listening to me?", Katja snapped me out of my thoughts.

"What?"

"Next week, when the scars are so far healed, I am to present myself to all concerned. Will you be by my side then?"

"Sure thing, kitten. And as your tamer!"

"Hmm, I'd like that!"

"But tell me, Katja, where do you actually live now? You moved out of the apartment you shared with your boyfriend?"

Surprised, Katja looked at me.

"Um, honestly, I hadn't thought about it at all. I've been living here for the last few months. My stuff is in storage. I haven't started looking for a new place yet."

"How about moving in with David and me on a transitional basis? Our estate is big enough and we have small apartments for visitors. Just for a few months until my surgery is successful too?"

"Honestly, wouldn't that bother David and you?"

"Not at all. Even David made the suggestion. He thinks that with the media hype that will follow, you'll be better off with us."

"Media hype?"

"Oh, haven't you thought about the fact that our changes will cause a stir?"

"Not so really. I mean, a lot of people have extreme body modifications. Tattooed from head to toe, split tongues, altered eye colors or brandings. Hardly anyone cares about that anymore. Why should it be any different now?"

"Because it's a genetic intervention. Many people are sensitive to it. But after a month or two, any excitement will subside. And you will live with us for that long. We have a private security service. However, I don't think there will be much excitement either."

"Thank you very much for the offer! I will think about it. But maybe something else will come up."

Katja smiled meaningfully at this.

"Frank?"

She nodded.

"I think he fell in love with me."

"And you?"

"Me too!"

* * *

For the next few weeks, I only met Katja every three days, because I had a busy schedule myself. As soon as I had the operation, I was out of action for a few weeks. My numerous, social obligations had to be delegated or suspended for this time.

Her scars faded visibly, and the regrowing hair hid the rest.

Finally, the end was approaching, which we celebrated with a big party, with all the participants.

However, still under the seal of secrecy.

After all, I wanted to be the first to go out in public changed like this.

In retrospect, I should have left that to Katja.

Katja

Yes, of course I have always loved cats! And basically they also reflect my nature very well.

They are unpredictable, independent, but also affectionate. Not obedient like a dog.

That I met Sofie was an absolute stroke of luck in my life. And Frank, of course.

When I first met Frank, he was only one of many doctors I had seen over the past few months. Besides my psychiatrist, especially the doctors who performed the preliminary surgeries, like lengthening my arms. This all happened while I was still in Toronto.

Only when these preparations were completed did I fly to the special clinic to take the final step.

Stem cells had been taken from me to grow my new organs.

And Doctor Stein was the one who presented me with the result.

* * *

"I'm Doctor Stein, but feel free to call me Frank!"

His introduction was warm and accompanied by a smile.

In front of me was a tall, slim man in his early 40s, with dark hair.

He had dispensed with a doctor's coat, but instead wore jeans and a white shirt, with an open collar.

"Pleased to meet you, Frank! I'm Katja."

"You're welcome, Katja!"

"So you are the doctor who will perform my transformation?"

"One of them, yes. But I'm in charge. Now please sit down."

He pointed to a comfortable-looking set of white leather seats.

"We have a lot to talk about! May I offer you something to drink?"

"Some milk would be nice."

Frank looked at me a little puzzled, then laughed.

"Already quite a kitten? With pleasure, I'll have you brought right away!"

After he had conveyed the order to his assistant, he sat down with me in the armchair, half diagonally next to me, so that we could look at each other, but also look together at the large monitor on the wall in front of us.

Shortly after, our drinks arrived and we were left alone again.

The monitor came to life and showed images of transparent tanks. I already knew those because they were shown to me at the beginning of my stay here. That's where my tail and ears were grown.

Now in the three tanks were my new body parts. The two cat ears and the tail.

"So, Katja, as you can see, your new body parts are already developed and ready for transplantation. You will get to see them with your own eyes soon. At the moment, the final neurological tests are underway."

"Frank, what do you mean by neurological testing?"

"After all, the new body parts are not meant to be ornamental, but to function. That's why they also have to have feeling. And so far, the tests have been promising. But in the end, we won't know for sure until you wear them on your body. And that brings me to the reason for our meeting today. I need and want to tell you about all the possible risks and consequences."

"But I've already been through that! The last few months have been about nothing else. The dozens of sessions with my psychiatrist alone, where we went over everything long and hard."

"Those were the psychological assessments and the potential consequences. But now it's very specifically about the health risks. Up to and including your death!"

For a moment I sat there shocked.

"To my death?"

Frank nodded.

"Yes! It will be a serious, long procedure. And no one can say with certainty whether you will wake up from the anesthesia. The risk is small, but not zero! And this is only one of many risks. We will create new nerve pathways, which can lead to previously unknown effects. Paralysis, permanent pain, possibly loss of vision or hearing. Even the successful operations on apes do not give us any security, because apes cannot speak and give information about what they feel. You need to reconsider all of this."