Sarah tried to think. It was so hard, with Simone petting her like that. The purring drove all other thoughts out. “C’n I…be human again to think…?”

“Nuh-uh,” Simone said. “Now or never. Make your decision.”

Sarah arched her back involuntarily under the petting. “If I shay yesh…you’ll do thish a lot?”

“All the time!” Simone said cheerfully, scratching under her chin. “But if you say no, you don’t ever get it again!”

Sarah gave up. “All right.”

“All right?”

Sarah sighed. “I’ll…be your pet kitty.” As she said it, she felt something change—almost like a click. And then she realized in the core of her very being that she was Simone’s pet kitty now. Whether she liked it or not, Sarah knew she belonged to Simone.

“Excellent!” Simone lifted the Sarahkitty off of her lap, then did something and Sarah was human again—mostly. She still had the cat ears and tail. “Now you can go home and arrange to move your stuff over here.”

And Sarah knew there wasn’t anything she could say but, “You’ve got it.”