collar transformation into meow skulls

Man, I should have known better than to agree to one of Ben's stupid dares. We were just hanging out by the lockers, him, me, and Maya, like we do every afternoon. Maya was busy scrolling on her phone, and Ben was being... well, Ben.

He pulls this leather spiked collar out of his backpack. Where did he even get that? 'I bet you won't wear this for the rest of the day,' he smirks. Maya looks up, raises an eyebrow, and just goes back to her screen. I shouldn't have cared, but that look in his eye... 'Fine, whatever,' I muttered, snatching it from him.

I buckled the cool metal around my neck, giving Ben a challenging look. 'Happy now?'

But as the buckle clicked, the world... shifted.

It started with a pins-and-needles sensation, beginning right at the collar and spreading down my arms. I looked down, and my skin was... blurring. Wait, no, that's hair. Fur. Black and white fur was rapidly spreading over my hands. My fingernails were thickening into hard, black claws. My shoes felt tighter, then exploded as my feet elongated and grew pads.

Panic set in, but it was different. Less 'oh my god, what is happening' and more like... a spike of adrenaline, a desire to bolt, to scramble up something high.

'H-hey, man, what's going on?' Ben stammered, his eyes widening. Maya's phone clattered to the floor.

I tried to speak, but the words got caught. My jaw was reshaping, pushing forward. I could feel my teeth sharpening. When I finally forced air out, it was a high-pitched, guttural sound, not my voice.

The physical changes were terrifying, but what was worse was my mind. It was like a thick fog was rolling in, pushing back my thoughts about exams and what to have for dinner. In their place, new, sharper instincts were taking hold. Suddenly, Maya wasn't just my friend; she was a large, looming warm presence. And Ben... he was noisy. Too noisy.

I felt a new weight dragging behind me. A tail. My tail. It twitched.

I wasn't scared anymore. Or rather, the fear was overshadowed by this incredible surge of confidence. This attitude. I leaned back against the lockers, my body finding a new, lazy power in the posture. The school uniform, which had been cutting off my circulation, now felt oddly loose and right, transformed into this baggy, black ensemble.

The change was complete. The face in the reflection of the locker mirror wasn't mine. It was a calico cat. A cool, smirking cat. Me. Meow Skulls.

I looked at Maya, standing there stunned, holding her breath. I looked at Ben, mouth agape, pale and trembling. A slow, knowing smile spread across my new feline face.

You dared me, didn't you, buddy?