Flora's Arrangements

(Men and Women to Plants)

Flora’s Arrangements: a simple store in the middle of southeastern Florida.  It’s out of the way, too far from any landscaping opportunities to make its wares desirable...  But its business doesn’t rely on the selling its wares.  Its business relies on a little bit of change.

Flora is a witch, and a damned good one at that.  Most of her kind preferred to use others, changing humans against their will.  After all, transformation is the key to immortality for their kind.  But Flora is in no way a typical witch. She only nibbles on time borrowed from people’s changes, preferring to ask for permission first.  Finding voluntary subjects helps her stay abreast of the law, of any authority—and it makes her popular and well-liked with her usual clients.

So, without further ado, let’s take a step into this quaint little shop with a magical owner, watch a few chapters from the life of the kind witch with a green thumb.

 

Muscari

Flora looked up in mild surprise as someone walked into her shop.  It was a college-aged woman; tall and attractive.  The stranger brushed a lock of tawny-blonde hair from her eyes, looking at the shopkeeper with a nervous smile.

“Flora?”  She asked, her voice smooth, but a little hesitant.  There was a faint waver to it, the surprise of someone who doesn’t expect dreams to become reality.

Flora smiled; this woman was in the right place.  The shopkeeper hopped over the counter with a nimble grace, attained through centuries of existence.  She looked the woman up and down, smiling kindly.  “And how may I help you today?”

The woman smiled.  “I heard you specialize in... change?”  She said it almost a little hesitantly, unsure as to whether or not to believe the scene around her.

Flora’s answer was simple and effective.  She cupped the woman’s right hand in her own, sending some of her energy into the human.

The girl gasped with delight as her hand turned a vibrant green, her fingers conjoining to form a leaf.  Without any further need for introductions, the girl looked Flora in her eyes, smiling like a child at Christmas.  “Miss Flora, I’d like to become a muscari... please.  Just for a month, if that’s at all possible?  My job doesn’t let me take too much time off, and...”

Flora laughed, waving her hands through the air gently.  The girl’s clothes vanished; then her skin took on a greenish hue.

“Oh!  Is it starting already?  How can I ever repay you?”  The woman exclaimed, running her left hand along the leaf attached to her other wrist.

“Honey, I do this for people like you, people who want a little change.”  Flora winked.  It wasn’t entirely true, but it wasn’t a lie, either.  Flora really liked the smiles on people’s faces when she changed them—smiles like the one on this woman’s face right now.  That said, tipping never hurt—and luckily, most people seemed more than eager to fork over thousands of dollars in gratitude.

The woman smiled, but was unable to say anything further.  Her lips sealed the minute they made contact with another, and her eyes started to widen as she patted her face down.  She looked back to Flora, who smiled and produced a small viewing mirror for the younger woman to look at her progress.

The new client’s eyes lit up as her face started to take on a purplish hue, and she raised her other hand to her face.  As she moved her arm, her fingers conjoined, her palm becoming more plant than human—but she could still feel her face become silky soft.  The woman’s eyes filled with a relaxed contentment as her body slimmed, her entire frame shrinking around her.

Her torso, her hips, her legs—all of them were dwindling, shrinking to become a fragile stem.  The woman’s eyes fluttered close as she fell into the settled relieve that was becoming a plant.  Her head became lighter, thin lines tracing their way along her face—becoming the start of dozens of small bubbly flowers.

Flora smiled to herself, snapping her fingers to materialize a terra cotta pot beneath her newest addition.  She hoped that her customer had a good time...  Even if she’d forgotten to get the woman’s name.  Well, this woman would probably be a returning customer, so she’d just get her later.   For now...  Light to average sun, watered three times a day...

 

A Lovers’ Embrace

“Hey...  Do you think you could change us in a way that we’re hugging, maybe?”

Flora blinked in surprise.  That was hardly a typical request, but this pair of young adults were hardly a typical couple.  They had introduced themselves as Marco and Kat, but after just a few seconds of being with them other, Flora could tell that there was something off about them.  They had this tendency to look at each other when talking, and Flora got the distinct impression that if she wasn’t in the room, they’d have pounced upon each other in a flurry of romance.

“Um.  Maybe?  I don’t do too much merging...”  Flora scratched her head—sometimes couples wanted to become mangrove trees, and while that was well within her powers, it was always a little draining, especially to get them sorted out after the transformation.

Kat waved her hands, shaking her head.  “No!  We were thinking...”  She looked up to Marco, trailing a hand along his chest.

“About becoming a tree and a vine.”  He finished for her, kissing the top of her head.

Flroa sighed with relief.  “So, Marco will be the tree, I take it?”

He shook his head, patting his fiancée’s shoulders.  “Kat wanted to be the tall one for a change.  And we’re always looking for new ways to...”

“Spice things up.”  Kat giggled as she spoke, cupping Marco’s hands in hers.

Flora smiled, waving for them to follow her.  It was always nice to help out a pair of lovers...  But what to make them?  Obviously, Marco would be a passion flower vine—that was simple.  But Kat...  Maybe a pine tree?  Yes, that would work nicely.

They weren’t as ‘Floridian’ as palm trees were, but the abundance of branches would prove quite nice for a vine to hang from.  Moreover, if Kat wanted to be tall, there were few things better.  Yes, this would work out nicely.

Flora waved the two of them to an empty plot, gauging its light level and proximity to her sprinklers.  It was about right, pending one thing.  “How long do you want to be changed for?”  Flora asked with a smile.

Kat beamed back.  “Is ‘life’ an option?”  She tossed Flora a pair of keys before the startled witch could respond.

“They’re to the red pickup truck.  In the back, we’ve ‘monetized all of our assets’.  At least, according to our banker.”  Marco explained, hugging Kat tightly.  “It’s not much, just a few hundred thousand dollars...  But that and the truck should make up for any costs, right?”

Flora nodded eagerly.  Much as she hated to admit it, working to please others often left her purse a little empty, and she loved taking donations.  This would help run her shop for at least another decade.  “In that case, I want you two to take a step back and to the left.”

Assuming Kat would grow in the way pines tended to, she’d spread out over the next few dozen years...  And by then, Flora would need a new sprinkler system anyways.

The couple obeyed eagerly, their faces shining with anticipation as Marco hugged Kat a little tighter.

Well, Flora was never one to disappoint...  She sent a faint tendril of magic through the ground, grinning as Kat’s eyes lit up.

“Oh!”  The girl breathed.  “I think it’s starting!”  A moment later, her shoes tore, thick wooden roots surging out from her feet.  She giggled as they buried themselves into the dirt, anchoring her firmly in place.  Then, the girl wobbled for a moment as she gained a few inches in height, her hands instinctively cupping around Marco’s embrace.

Flora smiled at that scene; that would be a good pose for them.  She sent another wave of change towards the two, locking all of Kat’s joints below her shoulders.  Then, Flora focused on hardening Kat’s skin, turning it into thick bark.

Kat moaned desirously as her legs sealed together, becoming the start to her trunk.  Her legs expanded, becoming the same diameter as her hips, and all human shape was enveloped by that of a tree.  Thick bark covered the girl’s lower half, and her arms and hands started to become a thick pair of branches, holding her boyfriend’s hands firmly in place.

It was a good start, and should be enough to let Flora focus on Marco a little.  She cast another transformation spell, grinning as she disintegrated what remained of both Flora and Marco’s clothes.  Well, it wasn’t exactly true disintegration—she’d simply teleported their clothes into a dormant volcano.

Marco shivered for a moment—either from cold or from the fact that his lower body was unraveling, becoming a tangled network of green vines that raced across Kat’s body.  His chest unfurled itself too, and a second later, his arms followed.  However, Flora made sure to keep his arms in their same embrace, anchoring him securely to Kat.

Then, Flora accelerated both of their spells, and Kat yelped slightly in surprise as she grew taller and taller, her neck stretching away from her body, thickening like the rest of her trunk.  Marco’s head became a series of green vines, racing halfway up his girlfriend’s trunk.

She sprouted branches, and he grew leaves, a wave of green blanketing the brown pine bark.  Kat continued to grow, stretching until her face was twenty feet above the ground.  Her roots stretched to accommodate her new form, digging in deeper, growing thicker so she’d never be uprooted.

Then, Kat’s branches grew an ocean of green needles, and flowers bloomed across Marco’s form.  It was a nice addition of color, and Flora beamed with pride as she saw the faint speck that was Kat’s face sink back into the tree.  The girl was smiling.

 

Potted

Gardenia sighed, awash in an ocean of content.  Then, she giggled, giving herself a mental jolt to the head.  She wasn’t Gardenia; her name was Lavender!  Funny how being a flower for a few months could make you forget you were named after one.

She stretched her stem a little higher, her leaves wide open to bask in the warm light of the sun.  Lavender’s lower body was buried under a thin layer of warm soil, a network of roots still drinking in the nutrients of her last watering.

Some of her roots had grown to the edges of her confines, trailing the edges of her pot, her lover.  That was another unexpected joy of visiting Flora’s Arrangements.  Her boyfriend, Kyle, had always had a thing for being turned into an inanimate object.  He’d known of Lavender’s affinity for flowers and had set up this little ‘vacation’—her best birthday gift in years.

It was especially nice because Flora was more than willing to accommodate their request.  Apparently, she’d gotten a few inanimate requests before—and while by her own admission, the magic woman admittedly wasn’t the best at inanimate TFs, she wasn’t quite awful at it either.  In her own words, ‘It just takes a little more concentration’.

And whatever concentration Flora had put into it was well-spent.  Kyle had become an ornately glazed ceramic pot, and Flora was all too happy to step into his cool body.  Flora had performed a ‘special’ transformation for them, where they became a man-sized pot and flower before being shrunk.

Lavender had loved that almost as much as she loved being a flower—Flora had started her transformation by filling Kyle with soil, half-burying Lavender in warm earth.  And when the changes had begun...  Lavender felt some of her petals unfurl with bliss.

That was a nice touch—she still had a mild amount of control over her own body.  Lavender could adjust her leaves slightly, stretch herself out, let her petals unfurl...  It was all extremely relaxing, like a well-devised yoga session.  She soaked in more and more sunlight, her golden petals fluttering in a faint breeze as she gorged herself on the warm light.

Quietly, she hoped that Kyle was having as good of a time as she was.  Being inside of his clay body was like constantly being cuddled, and Lavender could set her mind adrift.  That was the oddest thing—as a flower, she never truly slept.  Instead, she could send herself into a warm, drifting lull.  Her body would be entirely at ease, and she could just forget who she was, becoming a buttercup inside a snug and ornate pot.

Lavender found herself drifting away again, and she stretched her leaves a little further, taking in more and more of the light that had become half of her sustenance.  Flora wouldn’t be back to water her for at least a few hours, so Lavender could just settle back into Kyle’s embrace and enjoy their time together.

Her petals fluttered in an equivalent of a smile, and Lavender found herself sinking into the well of bliss that was being a buttercup.  She was a beautiful, golden flower in a large garden, and she loved it.

 

Anniversary

Barry grinned from ear to ear as Flora stepped out of his closet, looking a little worse for the wear.  She dusted herself off, frowning at one of her best customers.  “How many times do I have to tell you?”  She sighed.  “Clean your damned closet before I come over!”

Barry hugged her by way of an apology.  “Hey, you could always drive.”

“That’s so... pedestrian.”  She grinned at her own joke.  “Anyways, are you ready?”  She pulled out a soil-filled flower pot with a flourish.

Barry nodded handing her a card.  An instant later, the pot held a bundle of roses in its confines.  Flora took a deep whiff of his petals, nodding to herself.  “Sorry for the rush, but we do only have ten minutes until midnight.”

Barry would have nodded if he could.  Instead, he sat quietly in his pot while Flora carried him down to his family room.  Christie, his beautiful wife, was waiting on the couch, no doubt eager to receive her present.  It had been twenty years since they’d started to go out, and five since they’d met Flora.  They were some of the only people to know the secret of her generosity, and they’d practically adopted her into their family as a sister... Even though she was several hundred years older than either of them.

This led to several visits, and making things like today seem completely commonplace—despite their fantastic nature.

Christie smiled up at Flora as she descended the stairs to the family room.  “Oh, hi Flora.  I didn’t hear you...”  She trailed off as she looked at what the witch was holding.  “Oh my God, Barry?”

Flora nodded, slipping out the card with a grin.  “He wanted me to read this aloud.”  She cleared her throat and tucked the pot under her right arm.  In a loud, clear voice, she began to read aloud.

“‘Christie, do you remember our first date?  I promised you roses every day, a promise that I’m afraid I haven’t always made up for.  This it to make up for some lost time...  And also to give us a night you won’t forget.  Flora, now!’  Oh, wait, I shouldn’t have read that last bit.”

Christie opened her mouth to ask a question before she yelped, her body vanishing from the legs up.  It looked like some bad sort of sci-fi trick, and she glared at the roses in the pot...  Until she noticed new blooms springing to life from within the pot’s confines; thorns and leaves alike decorating the old stems.

Christie’s eyes practically rolled back into her head with pleasure as she realized she could more than feel Barry—she was a part of him, and he was a part of her.  The woman closed her eyes, a look of relaxed euphoria on her face as the last of her vanished, leaving a pile of empty clothes on the couch.

Flora giggled to herself and stroked the plant that was her two closest living friends.  She slowly paced it on the coffee table, picking the television remote up with her other hand.  Then, she settled into the couch, turning on their big-screen TV.  It was a good deal, they could spend a unique night together while Flora got to watch the series finale of her favorite show on a fifty-inch flatscreen.

She looked over to the couple with a smile, trailing a hand along their petals again.  “Happy anniversary, you guys.”

 

A Vine Time

I flushed slightly as the changes started.  I’d never had a bad change at Flora’s before, but this was...  Something new.  Something different.

I looked to the brown-haired witch; then down to my hand.  It was like my body was unwinding itself, becoming a series of tangled, organic cords.  I used my unchanged hand to help prop myself up to a sitting position on her windowsill—that’s where she wanted me.

Then, I looked back down to my transforming hand, feeling the changes up to my elbow—watching and feeling as my arm split off into five leafy strands, the leaves popping out form my slimming skin.  I began to hyperventilate in fear—a fear that vanished as the first of many red flowers bloomed on my skin.

I let out a relieved sigh, stretching my arm to the top of the windowsill.  My new body anchored itself well to the wood, and I yelped in surprise as the rest of my arm stuck to it, growing around the iron mesh Flora had set up.  It was still warm from the sunlight, and I felt myself start to drift into that relaxed slumber of a plant’s existence—even though I was still mostly human.

At least, I thought I was still mostly human.  I looked down to find that my legs had changed already; my chest soon following suit.  I hurriedly shut my eyes, doing my best to focus on the warm sunlight that was pouring in from the window.  It was definitely the oddest transformation I’ve asked Flora to do.

Yet ‘odd’ didn’t mean ‘unenjoyable’.  Before too long, my vines started to curl around themselves, overlapping and threading through the rest of my body.  It was an exceedingly odd feeling—like giving myself a big hug that only grew tighter as my vines continued to spread.

I could feel dozens of flowers pop their way into existence along my body, and I shuddered with delight at the new intake of sunlight.  My vines continued to spread up and down the sill, and I completely lost myself to the change.  Unlike being a flower, being a vine was an existence of constant pleasure—too much pleasure.

I had so many flowers, so many leaves—and each of them was picking up more and more euphoric sensations.  The sheer sensation that gripped my body was almost erotic, and I felt myself spreading our, growing and growing.  But of course, time flies when you’re having fun.  And the change was over all too soon.

“What happened?”  I blinked and spoke the moment I had my facilities under control once more.

“It’s been three months!”  Flora beamed as she spoke, professional pride underlying her every word.  “I had to keep trimming you so that you wouldn’t grow into any other plants, like Dave!”  She pointed to a nearby hibiscus, and I blinked with surprise as I saw the faint markings of how far I’d spread.

“Oh.”  I blinked, turning to Flora.  My mind said ‘sorry’, but my mouth said “So can I be transformed again?”