Forever Running

Growl.

I stood in place for a moment, rerunning what the powerful eagle said in my mind.
"I can sense you are a Morph."
That is always what i thought of myself, but no one had come up and said to my face i am one. Yet here he is, having clutched my darkest secret. I bowed my head, furiously thinking through all the possibilites of how he could've known.

"Do it." The eagle spoke. "Do it now."

I froze. I meagerly whispered, "I am weak. Please do not force me." I looked around at Margaret and Ron. They looked scared, huddled together, but also pitiful. Wonton whapped me with his wing. It was solid and strong from many years of flying. "I'll ask you one more time. Transform. NOW." I gave him a long, puppy-eyed stare. He stared back, his eyes full of anger and... hurt?

I curled up into a ball, and, slowly but surely, started to morph. I felt my bones pop and crack, and my muscles stretch and tremble. I stood tall, now as a magnificent golden tiger. I shoved my ears forward and held my tail high, in a dominant position. It usually takes a bit of time to get used the tiger form, who has such large paws. I swiveled my giant head around, and put on my calm, relaxed eyes. I focused on my newfound friends. Tori was sitting, her front paws between her back paws. She was leaning back, with huge eyes I could barely see and a wide, gaping mouth. Margaret was cowering behind Tori, and i could only see her fluffy, orange tail, and it was stiff. Ron had his tail straight up and held a good posture, but I could tell he was only acting. I turned back to Wonton. His eyes were wide, but that was the only sign he was nervous. I wound back my muscley arm, ready to strike. He didn't even flinch. Then I noticed a movement, very faint in his eyes. There were almost invisible squares and lines making squarish patterns. They were moving for sure, but the action seemed to be eluding my eyes. Wherever I looked, it stopped, but continued around that one point. I turned back to the paralyzed trio. "It's okay, I don't bite. Unless you are Wonton. Anyways, how long have you known him?" I asked. Margaret popped out of her hiding place and shook her head in disbelief. She had a far-away look in her eyes, and was directed behind me, off to the side. I was filled with a fear. Of what, im not quite sure. After a brief mental battle with my concience, i squeezed my eyes tight and slowly turned around. I strapped down my ears and squinted open my eyes. I gasped and jumped back.

Wonton was dead.