Unexpected Results

The repeated harsh grating beeping of a digital alarm clock blared. Ryan’s eyelids slowly opened, taking in the diffused morning light from the thin blinds. She rolled onto her side and reached over to turn the alarm off, grabbing her phone and rolling back to check for any messages or emails. One single message from a coworker trying to comfort her about what had happened yesterday. Yesterday with Logan…

Oh yeah, Ryan didn’t have to work today on account of all that. She realized that she could’ve disabled the clock’s alarm last night and slept in. She wanted to sleep. She wanted to stay in bed… for a long time. Logan…

Ryan’s mind returned to yesterday, replaying everything since the moment she first saw him. Was there anything off about him at the time? Even something subtle? A tiny sign, a symptom? Her mind ran through everything, arriving at the experiment. Did she do anything wrong? Connect something incorrectly or… just… anything at all?

Ryan felt like she was searching for a needle in a haystack, without any proof of the needle’s existence. Her mind went back to the worst moments. The memories of finding Logan, her naive self thinking that he merely nodded off...

Ryan pulled the covers over her head. She wanted to be covered. She wanted to be insulated from it all. Why did this happen? Was this some sort of divine punishment? Like the story of Icarus? No, Logan wasn’t the one who flew too close to the sun, it was her. So why was Logan the one bearing her sins?

While Ryan wanted to stay in bed for the whole day, her stomach grumbled, clearly not on the same page. Ryan tried to ignore the hunger, but she knew that it would only get worse if she didn’t eat. She emerged from the covers, finally sitting up in bed. Usually, her roommate would wake up to Ryan’s alarm and make a quick breakfast for the both of them before heading out. Instead, Ryan saw her roommate sitting in her bed on the other side of the room, staring at her own hands.

The way she was moving was… strange. She looked somewhat confused and disoriented. Sort of like a baby deer or something.

“Casey? You okay?”

Casey did a little jolt and looked at Ryan.

“Oh! Uh, I’m totally fine.”

She blinked a few times, like she was trying to remember something.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Me. Casey. I’m Casey…”

The look of confusion and discomfort tinted her face again, as she looked down at her hands.

“No wait… I’m… not Casey… I’m Logan.”

That name shot through Ryan like a bullet. Was Casey fucking with Ryan right now?

What the hell? Was this some sort of fucked up prank? Wait, how did Casey even know about Logan? Ryan hadn’t told her roommate about yesterday. Did someone from Ryan’s workplace tell her?

“Casey… Stop messing with me. It’s not funny.”

Ryan was surprised by her own voice, how hurt she sounded when the words left her mouth. Still, this was a very distasteful joke on Casey’s part.

“No Ryan, I promise I’m not messing with you! I’m…”

Casey’s voice trailed off as the answer seemed to elude her. Ryan was starting to feel a mixture of confusion, concern, and curiosity all at once. Ryan hadn’t lived with Casey for all that long, but she knew that Casey was pretty bad at lying and acting. At least she wasn’t good enough to get anything past Ryan’s keen eye.

“How do you even know about Logan? I didn’t tell you anything about yesterday.”

“You didn’t tell me… but I know. But why do I know? I know about Logan… I am Logan. But I’m Casey…”

Ryan would have concluded that Casey was having some sort of mental health or
identity crisis, if not for the mention of Logan. No, that piece didn’t fit the puzzle, and if one piece didn’t fit, that meant that the whole picture should be reexamined.

“What’s the last thing you remember?”

A basic question. Time to start from scratch, clear away all of the old puzzle pieces and begin with a clean slate. Casey’s brow furrowed as she closed her eyes, trying to sort through her uncertain memories.

“Um, I remember… going to bed, just like normal. I remember seeing you earlier, and you looked exhausted, but I didn’t say anything, cuz honestly I didn’t want to deal with your baggage. No wait, that’s what Casey remembers. Ugh, this is such a pain in the ass!”

Casey punched her bed in frustration.

“No, it's something else… something separate… I remember… a long boring hallway… some gross green slugs… uh…”

Casey kept trying to focus, but it seemed like she’d hit a wall. Meanwhile, Ryan’s attention piqued at the mention of the slugs. The slugs… Ryan hasn't thought of them since Logan was the priority, but that one slug that they were experimenting on… what happened to it? Maybe… just maybe…

“Casey let me take a look at you.”

Ryan got out of bed and went over to her roommate. Casey seemed a little on-edge, but cooperative. Ryan immediately checked Casey's ears, where she noticed the faint trail of dried slime. Ryan backed away and met Casey’s expectant gaze.

“You… you are…”

Induction

Casey saw Ryan faltering with her words, a rare occurrence. Casey didn't like that.

“What am I?” Casey said, with clear worry in her voice.

Casey looked at Ryan with desperation, but Ryan’s expression unexpectedly brightened as she broke out into a genuine smile.

“You are a breakthrough! An incredible success! The product of my genius! You are a revolutionary discovery!”

Casey was taken aback by Ryan's sudden outburst of joy and didn't know how to react, but it didn’t take long for confusion to quickly turn into annoyance.

“Hey! Cut that shit out! I'm still freaking out over here while you're jerking yourself off!

Stop patting yourself on the back and tell me what’s fucking going on!”

Ryan regained her composure, but was still visibly excited. She quickly went back to her side of the room and grabbed her phone, opening an app to take notes.

“Oh, let me assure you, we'll examine this quite thoroughly. Okay, so first of all, you believe you are Logan, but you also said that you’re Casey. Can you elaborate on that?”

Casey managed to calm down a bit, now tasked with answering Ryan’s question.

“Like, I have Casey's memories. And it feels like I have Casey's personality. Her Habits too. Oh, not to mention her body, but that's obvious. Like, every part is Casey, but somehow I feel like… no, I know all of it isn't really ‘me’. It's like, pieces surrounding me, but I'm still Logan inside.”

Ryan quickly took notes while Casey responded, using her smart phone's swipe keyboard to jot down info as fast as she could.

“Fascinating… Do you know what you are, and how you ended up inside Casey?”

She closed her eyes and furrowed her brow while trying to remember, but she seemed to struggle.

After trying and failing a few times, it was clear that her efforts weren't bearing any fruit, so she gave up.

“No… I don't know what I am. I don't know how I ended up like this either. Like, what the hell am I? Am I a split personality or something?”

Ryan could hear the concern rising in Casey's voice again. Ryan took a second to consider her options. She could try to lie to Casey, to Logan, and attempt to hide what she knew. Casey would believe almost any answer at this point, but lying to her would have little benefit, and pose an unnecessary risk. Telling the truth was the smart call here.

“Okay Logan, calm down. I’m going to tell you what’s going on. It’s going to sound crazy, but it’s the truth.”

Ryan gave Casey a moment to prepare herself.

“You are a slug. You were trained on Logan’s brain, so you have some of his intelligence, memories, and personality. You have the ability to enter a host’s brain and control their body. You are inside Casey’s brain right now. I must've accidentally brought you with me, and you crawled into Casey while she was sleeping.”

Casey stared at Ryan as her existence was explained to her, barely reacting as the revelation was handed down. Silence occupied the space between them for a while, until Casey spoke.

“Well, you were right about one thing, you do sound batshit crazy. Fucking insane. But, like… maybe I’m going nuts too. I don’t know why, but I think you’re right. Like, I know you’re right. I can feel it. I can sorta feel my real body if I focus on it.”

Ryan raised an eyebrow as her interest was piqued again.

“Really? What’s it like? What does your real body feel like?”

“Uh, it’s pretty weird. Like, I still feel the normal Casey stuff, but there’s a little bit more. It’s sorta like… a quieter voice in a room of people talking, I guess. But, like, I can try to listen for it and tune the other voices out… It’s sorta like that. I can feel myself, surrounded by Casey’s brain. I can move around in here. I don’t know why, but I sorta just know how to move around in here without breaking anything, and what the stuff around me does.”

“Hmm… interesting, that must be your innate slug instincts. Perchance, do you happen to have any desire to climb to a high place?”

Casey seemed confused by the oddly specific question, but still humored Ryan and considered it.

“Um, not really. I mean, now that you mention it, I wouldn’t really be against it, but… yeah not really. Uh, Ryan, can I ask some questions too?”

Ryan was still jotting down notes on her phone as she gave a quick answer.

“Sure, ask away.”

“Like, how am I going to live like this? Am I Casey now, forever? Like, forever ever? Did I steal the real Casey’s life from her?”

Ryan could hear her test subject getting agitated.

She needed to keep Casey calm. From her previous attempts at calming Casey, it seemed that words had a limited effect, so Ryan decided to try a different method this time. Something a little… stronger.

Ryan put her phone back into her pocket and approached Casey, pulling her into a hug. Ryan consciously maximized the comfort and security of her embrace. Casey heard Ryan’s calm and reassuring voice close to her ear.

“It’s okay Logan. I know you must be confused, but you can rely on me. We’ll figure this out together.”

Ryan continued to hug Casey for another lingering moment, before separating from her. Casey’s expression seemed mixed, a bit outside of what Ryan expected.

“Uh… thanks, I guess. That was… strange.”

Ryan’s intuition picked up on something again.

“Strange in what way?”

“Like, I felt sorta… conflicted? When you hugged me, the Casey parts were like, not into it, but the Logan part… liked it. Like, it’s weird when your brain thinks one thing, and you’re thinking another.”

Ryan got her phone back out, and took note of what Casey said. While she was taking notes, Casey continued.

“I feel like… I could… if I focus…”

Casey seemed to zone out for a few moments, before snapping back to reality.

“Oh my god, I think I just changed something!”

“What do you mean?”

Casey raised her hand and tapped a finger against her temple.

“My brain, Casey’s brain! I think I just changed something. Like, I honestly just wanted to see if I could do it! I think I just modified her brain.”
Ryan felt her curiosity and excitement reaching new peaks, as she realized what Casey was saying.

“What did you do? What did you change?”

“I tweaked Casey’s personality! Just a little, so she doesn’t dislike hugging you anymore.”

“Really? That’s… incredible!”

“I mean, yeah it’s cool but, like, what about Casey? I just changed her brain, like, without permission!”

“Logan, don’t worry too much about it. You’re just helping her out a little, removing a little negativity from her life. You don’t need permission to do something that she’d thank you for right? It’s just like a gift.”

“Oh, uh, yeah I guess. Still though, I feel like it’s sorta like great power, great responsibility or something, you know?”

“Certainly. That ability could easily be abused, but I trust you. And you should trust me trusting you. We’re in this together, aren’t we?”

“Yeah of course, I mean, you’re the only one who wouldn’t think I’m crazy. Say, uh… maybe we should… test it out? The change I made. Just to, like, make sure it worked?”

It was a strange sight for Ryan, her roommate Casey asking for such a thing with a shy and bashful demeanor, but it wasn’t really the same Casey anymore. Ryan couldn’t help but indulge her new partner in… not crime! Partner in science, yes! Ryan pulled Casey into another embrace, this time without the goal of comforting her. It was a tighter, more intimate contact, a reward of sorts.

Casey could feel Ryan’s arms wrap behind her and pull their bodies against one another. Ryan’s body heat, her softness… Casey could feel her own body warming up in reaction as her heart started to throb in her chest. It only lasted a few moments, but they were moments that were being eternally etched into Casey’s memory. When Ryan pulled away, Casey almost wanted to step forward to continue the fleeting moment, but alas she knew better.

“So, did it work?”

Ryan asked the question entirely rhetorically, as the starstruck expression on Casey’s flushed face already provided the answer.

“Um… yeah.” was all that Casey was able to get out, still parsing through all the sensations her body just went through. The room went quiet again as Ryan went back to recording notes, and Casey descended from cloud nine back to Earth.

After finishing her last round of notes, Ryan wanted to ask more questions, experiment more, but an empty stomach had been nagging for a while in the background, successfully ignored until now.

“Hey Logan, how does breakfast sound? I’m sure Casey’s body is just as hungry as I am.”

“Oh yeah, I usually whip up breakfast, don’t I? Now that you mention it, I’m totally starving.”

Limitations

Ryan watched Casey work the stovetop, as the tantalizing sound and smell of eggs and bacon filled the kitchen. If Ryan didn't know any better, this could have mistaken this scene for any other morning. The way Casey maneuvered around the kitchen, the way she flipped the bacon over more times than necessary, it was all identical to the real thing. Well, ‘real’ would imply that the current Casey was fake. No, it was all Casey, just… with a little pinch of Logan, in the form of a slug.

Casey turned the stove off and plated the bacon and eggs. Thick cut bacon cooked right in the middle between chewy and crispy, accompanied by sunny side up eggs with runny yolks, cooked by using the bacon grease. Exactly the same as Casey’s standard everyday breakfast.

They both made short work of the meal. Ryan was hungrier than usual since breakfast was later than usual, delayed by the unusual events of the morning. After the quick refuel, Ryan wanted to immediately return to testing and questioning, but Casey wasn’t ready yet. She went to the fridge, getting a cup of strawberry yogurt, downing it by the spoonful before going back for a bagel. Ryan noted a significantly increased appetite in her notes. Casey rested a hand on her stomach and gave Ryan a concerned look.

“Ryan, I think something’s wrong.”

“What?”

“Like, my stomach is full, actually, more than full, but I still feel hungry. Like, really hungry, starving!”

The familiar look of confusion and concern graced Casey’s face once more, though Ryan couldn’t blame her, both of them were trying to figure things out all morning. Ryan furrowed her brow as she tried to understand the problem. This probably wasn’t a preexisting condition of Casey’s body, no this was almost certainly related to the slug. Was this a consequence of the brain modifications?

Maybe a mistake affecting the brain’s hunger signals? Perhaps a symptom of the slug merely parasitizing the host’s body?

“Ryan, like, maybe it’s the hunger, but I feel like I gotta leave. Like, it’s an itch telling me to go outside. What’s happening to me?”

Okay, new information. It had to be the brain with this second neurological symptom. Though, this second symptom was just as strange as the first. Why was Casey getting the urge to leave? A feeling… a compulsion… an instinct… oh! Oh! The slug! Of course the slug!

“Wait a second Logan, calm down. Calm down. I have a theory I’d like to test that might give us the answers to this, okay?”

With Ryan’s reassurance, Casey managed to get a grip pretty quickly. Upon seeing Casey relaxing a little, Ryan continued.

“Try to focus on your real body, uh, your slug body. Perhaps the senses that you are perceiving are not from Casey’s body, but your other one.”

Casey blinked as she considered Ryan’s theory, thinking that it could be right. Following instructions, she closed her eyes and stopped moving to focus. After a few seconds of concentration, her eyes opened again.

“Yeah, yeah, I think that’s it. It’s coming from me, not Casey. But like, what does that mean?”

“Well, given what you said about feeling hungry and needing to get out, I assume you need to leave Casey’s body and feed your slug form.”

“Oh. Uh, yeah I guess that makes sense. But like, what do I do after? Like, if Casey finds out about me… I don’t even know- no wait I know exactly what she’d do. She’d freak the fuck out. We’re gonna be in some deep shit.”

“Well, would it be possible to modify her brain again? Maybe wipe her memories of this morning… or make Casey have to follow my orders… whatever is within your capabilities.”

Casey gave Ryan a certain look after she heard the second suggestion, wondering if she was actually serious about it.

“Uh, how about we start with a little amnesia instead of making me into your hypno-slave, okay?”

Casey closed her eyes, standing dead still for a few moments as she focused. It almost looked like she was meditating. Her outward appearance was like a tranquil lake, but below the surface, inside her head, a little invader was at work, making changes. It took a few long moments before Casey opened her eyes again.

“I think I did it.”

Casey moved over to the couch, moving as if she was exhausted, despite having just woken up from a full night’s sleep.

“That’s all I got… I gotta…”

She let her body fall onto the couch, loosely in a sitting position with her eyes closed. Ryan could guess what was coming, so she quickly retrieved a glass cup from the kitchen, before returning to Casey’s side. She pulled out her phone with her free hand, preparing to record a video. After a few tense moments of anticipation, a little green tip emerged from the darkness of Casey’s ear.

Ryan watched with perverse fascination, allowing the little green slug to wiggle its way back to the outside world, freeing itself and sliding onto the surface of the glass, leaving a slick trail of slug slime in its wake. Once its entire body had exited Casey and entered the cup, Ryan turned on the flashlight on her phone, trying to angle it to see deep inside Casey’s ear to check for any damage.

No blood, good. Ryan retrieved some cotton swabs and tissues to clean up any slug residue that would alert Casey after she woke up.

Turning her attention back to the slug. Before long, it was accommodated with a cherry tomato and floret of broccoli, fresh from the fridge. Ryan didn’t forget to sprinkle a little water on it too. A thin layer of plastic wrap with some small holes covered the opening of the cup, held in place with some rubber bands. With all these accommodations, the slug slowly recovered some of its liveliness inside its temporary tank. Casey, on the other hand, was still slumped on the couch.

Field Testing

It took about half an hour for Casey to wake up. Thankfully, the slug had done its job successfully, and her memories of this morning were altered. She thought that she overate too much breakfast, leading to a food coma. Ryan could tell that there was some mental incongruence, as ‘her’ actions didn’t really make sense to her, but being so late for work put that on the shelf. Casey rushed to prep herself, quickly dressing and putting on minimal makeup, hesitating for a moment before giving Ryan a quick hug and rushing out the door.
Ryan had been discreetly observing Casey the whole time, ensuring that her subject didn’t have unwanted memories nor any unintended changes.

Casey’s hug caught Ryan by surprise. She didn’t expect the slug’s earlier change to manifest itself in behavior like this. It seemed… powerful.

She excitedly returned to her room, opening up the desk drawer where she had hidden the slug, setting the cup on top of her desk as she marveled at it.

“Oh you beautiful little thing. We’ve got so many experiments to conduct together. I’ve still got so many questions for you. I can’t wait to talk to you again.”

Ryan let the slug continue to eat as she opened her laptop and copied her earlier notes into a proper document. The hastily collected information on her phone slowly transformed into an organized and usable format. She corrected any spelling mistakes, added any details that she didn't have the time to record at the time, and left comments on parts of Casey’s answers that Ryan wanted to expand upon. At the end, Ryan had a list of hypotheses and ideas, along with questions to ask during the next experiment.

After finishing the document, Ryan stared at it for a long moment. Should she report any of this to SynthraForma just yet? This breakthrough would certainly help smooth over the little incident yesterday. That was just a blip compared to the invention of a century- no, perhaps millennia? Maybe all history? Was that too much? Perhaps, but perhaps not. These slugs had the potential to alter humanity’s path forever. Only the future could tell, and Ryan was optimistically looking forward to it.

But Ryan was careful not to let this grand vision fog her view of the present. Indeed, being careless could cause everything to slip out of her hands. She had to play her cards right. Everyone else probably thought that Ryan was at her lowest right now, at her weakest and most vulnerable. This slug was a hidden ace up her sleeve. Ryan could make use of this. She had to.

The eager researcher still had a few hours to spare before her test subject was due to return. Casey worked as a barista, usually taking the late morning to early afternoon shift at a nearby coffee shop. It was a trendy place that took pride in their coffee quality and coffee story. Honestly, Ryan didn’t really think their product was all that different from the big name brands, at least not after sugar and cream.

Well, that was besides the point. Casey would routinely return in the afternoon, then enjoy a few hours of free time before going to her second job, the dinner and closing shift as a waitress at a local Italian restaurant. In that gap of free time, Casey almost always took a nap to recharge her batteries. That habitual nap would be the perfect opportunity for Ryan.

…

Navigating the urban jungle, Casey made her way down the sidewalk on her way back to the apartment. She’d just finished a pretty normal shift, thankfully without rude customers or wannabe fuckboys asking for her number.

The only notable thing was that one regular, the one that showed up at her last shift, and the shift before that. Judging by his body language and occasional glances at her, he wasn’t there just for coffee. He didn’t give off the vibe of a creep or a stalker or anything. Casey actually felt a little flattered. He looked like a nice, well-put-together guy, someone that most ladies wouldn’t mind settling down with, but to Casey he seemed a little… lukewarm? Boring, to put it a little less politely.

Casey wanted someone strong, handsome, and confident. Someone that could sweep her off her feet and carry her to bed with ease. Her mind flashed back to this morning, and the memory of hugging Ryan resurfaced. The sensation of Ryan’s body against hers. The feeling of… something inside Casey’s chest. Why did she initiate that hug? Why did it feel… the way it felt…

Well, she’d been feeling off this whole morning. Maybe it was the flu or something? Maybe too much work this month? Yeah, it had to be that. She’d have to take it easy once the weekend arrived. A prescription for rest, recovery, and relaxation. For now though, she’d have to make due with an afternoon nap before her next job.

Casey arrived back at the apartment, surprised to find her roommate still there. Usually Ryan would be at work at this hour. Ryan said that she was working from home today, but she’d pretty much never done that before. However, Casey didn’t want to dig any deeper, in fact she’d prefer to avoid Ryan at the moment. She just needed a little space after what had happened that morning.

Casey went to her dresser and grabbed a set of pajamas before changing in the bathroom. Despite the inconvenience, she usually changed clothes in the bathroom. It was something about the way Ryan looked at her. Once more, Casey’s mind returned to this morning, to the hug. Casey felt her cheeks blush a little, as she felt a tinge of… something. Why did she feel like this, and for Ryan of all people?

Forcing it out of her mind, Casey returned to the bedroom in her sleepwear, wasting no time to lay in bed. A three hour nap, then the dinner shift at Mio’s Restaurant & Bar. Repeat tomorrow and the day after, and the weekend would hopefully arrive quicker than she’d realize. Simple. As Casey laid out the rest of the week in her head, she drifted off to sleep.

…

Ryan looked down upon her sleeping roommate with her phone in one hand and the glass cup containing the slug in the other. If Casey were to wake up now, she'd definitely freak out. Ryan probably had something close to a creepy serial killer aura going on at the moment. But unfortunately for Casey, she was deep asleep and subject to Ryan's mercy, or lack thereof.

Ryan started recording with her phone, then moved the glass closer to Casey's sleeping form. Ryan positioned the glass sideways, touching it against the pillow underneath Casey's head. Ryan watched with a perverse glee as the slug moved out of the cup and onto the pillow, continuing towards Casey. Definitely not a mad scientist, nope, no way.

Ryan made sure to record the process thoroughly. It was almost like she was an overexcited child watching bugs, but the context was completely divorced from such an innocent moment. Ryan and the lens of her phone camera watched the slug trail its way up the pillow, soon making contact with the skin of Casey’s neck. It climbed and climbed, retreading the same path that it had traversed the previous night.

Soon enough, the slug found itself at the entrance of her ear and didn’t hesitate to immediately start squirming in. Ryan watched as the little creature fit its plump body into the small hole, recording the entire thing. Casey’s sleeping form seemed to grow a little unsettled by the unknown sensations invading her ear, but thankfully didn’t awaken.

Ryan moved the phone closer to Casey’s ear as the slug continued to wiggle its way inside. With every passing moment, the visible portion of the slug’s body outside of Casey shrunk. After the slug’s tail disappeared into the darkness of Casey’s ear, Ryan turned on her phone’s flashlight in an attempt to continue recording the last legs of the slug’s journey. Once it fully disappeared from sight, Ryan pulled the phone away, now forced to wait.

A few minutes passed as Casey peacefully napped, taking calm measured breaths like nothing had happened. Ryan continued to wait for the right time to wake her subject. There was a safe maximum time for the slug to do its work.

Ryan had inherited the data from her predecessors, data from their human experiments. Regardless of its source, it was still useful. Interestingly, the slugs would require a shorter and shorter time to gain control on the same subject.

After enough time had elapsed, Ryan took her phone back out to begin a new recording, then softly shook the body of her roomate. Casey shifted position slightly, groaned, then groggily opened her eyes.

“Ryan? What are you doing? Why are you recording me?”

“Don’t worry about that Casey, just focus on something for me okay? Try to think about who you are, what you are.”

Casey seemed confused, but still followed directions, closing her eyes to focus. Ryan was hoping that the slug would be able to repeat the realizations that it made this morning. Casey’s eyes remained closed in concentration, taking a significant amount of time before opening again, accompanied by a look of enlightenment on her face. “I’m… not Casey? I’m Logan. I’m, like, a slug?”

Ryan cracked a subtle smile.

“Yes, you are.”

Ryan stopped her phone’s video recording, going back to the notes app with some prepared questions.

“What do you remember, Logan?”

“Like, everything! Y’know how I wiped Casey’s memories of this morning? Well, it’s more like… I sorta moved them into a hard-to-find place. Like, between some math homework and other boring stuff, but I left a kinda… breadcrumb trail for myself to find them again.”

“Fascinating… We’re going to conduct further tests on your abilities. Are you ready?”

“Well, can’t really bite the hand that feeds me now can I? I'm just glad to have a body
again, let’s do it.”

Additional Data Collection

Casey sat on the edge of her bed while Ryan sat opposite to her in her desk chair. Ryan held her phone with her notes pulled up, ready to probe into her test subject.

“Logan, tell me everything about this morning from Casey's perspective. Spare no details. Tell me every internal thought, every feeling, every sensation, even if you don't think it's important.”

“Okay, yeah, totally. So first thing, I- uh, she was a little disoriented after waking up on the couch, and tried to remember what happened. She thought her memories, the fake ones that I made, were a little off. Like, eating herself into a food coma? No way, right? Luckily, being late for work took priority and she shelved it. At that point, she kinda went on autopilot, you know? Like, she was in such a hurry, it was just do this then do that, no time to think. And when she was heading to the door, she caught sight of you, and… you know.”

“Details Logan, tell me every single thing.”

“Okay, alright, fine. In the moment, it was just a quick little thing. Hugging you one moment, then out the door the next. But then it hit her like a brick. She got confused and flustered and embarrassed all at once, all while trying to get to work. It cooled down when she got behind the counter and had to start taking orders, but it was in the back of her mind all day really.”

“Fascinating. Did she suspect anything strange?”

“Well, she knew that something must’ve caused her weird behavior, but didn’t even know where to start pointing fingers. She sort of just rationalized it, and like, ended up concluding that it was overwork.”

“That’s good enough. The best case would have been total naivety and obliviousness, but I'll take rationalizing. We’ll just have to be a little careful going forward. Now, how exactly did you perform this personality change on Casey?”

“Well, I kinda just rewired some stuff. You know, connected some things here and disconnected some things there. Look, I’m not a neurologist or doctor or anything, so I don't really know what all the parts are called, but I just sort of… followed my instincts. Anyways, in the end, some of Casey's “romance and arousal" parts got connected with the “Ryan” parts in her brain. So like, she's not head over heels in love with you, but she’s definitely got complex feelings about you now.”

“I see. So it’s not specifically hugging me, but more generally physical attraction towards me?”

“Yeah, that's a good way to put it. Honestly, I don’t know if I can do something super specific like hugs only.”

“Hypothetically, would it be possible to modify Casey’s personality to make her fall in love with me? I should clarify that this isn't a request, just checking whether it’s possible.”

Casey's brain labeled this question as suspicious, causing Logan to briefly hesitate, but he pushed past any misgivings and answered loyally.

“...Maybe. It might be possible, or rather… not impossible? Like, it would take a lot of work. A lot. Mostly ‘cuz Casey kinda has her guard up around you… and sort of a negative impression. And like, all of that gets mixed into her memories, so I'd have to clean up a lot of stuff to make her fall in love properly.”

“I see. Could you elaborate on Casey’s negative impression of me?”

Ryan maintained her professional front, but Logan could tell that she was a bit… unsatisfied with what she had just learned. It probably wasn’t a surprise per se, but an inconvenient truth.

“Well, uh, Casey sort of… just caught a weird vibe from you I guess? Like, maybe negative was too strong of a word. It’s more like she doesn’t relax around you… and maybe suspects you of stealing glances at her occasionally… Uh, but I’m sure that’s just, like, Casey’s ego or something, so don’t worry about it.”

“I see. Well anyway, we've only got so much time after all. Let's move on to the next question.”
Despite the mild awkwardness, Logan did his best to answer Ryan’s next questions until none remained. By then the tension had been eased, and it was time to move on to practical experiments.

“Now then, Logan. This morning, you modified Casey's brain to feel physical attraction to me. I'd like to further explore that, if you don't mind.”

Ryan rose from her chair and brought her hands to her lab coat, slowly unbuttoning them one by one. As the starch white professional layer opened up, a tight figure hugging sweater was revealed, contouring around Ryan’s perfect bust and slim waist. Logan couldn’t look anywhere else even if he wanted to. His heart rate was already rising, but it jumped up again when the scientist moved over to his side, sitting intimately close on the bed. Logan felt a warmth creeping up his neck and his cheeks flush as his mind went a million directions, wondering what Ryan was thinking.

“Uh, so like, what’s the- the plan?”

Logan could hear his own voice quivering, making him all the more anxious. Looking at Ryan, the polite professional scientist from earlier was gone, replaced by something else entirely. Something with a subtle hunger hiding beneath its gaze, a feral motive within its languid movements. She leaned close to Logan’s ear and spoke in a soft and breathy tone, her voice sweeter than sugar.

“Just a little exploring~ A little experimenting~ Oh, and take note of how it makes you feel~ I'll ask about it later~ But for now, relax and enjoy~”

Logan felt Ryan reach out and grasp his hands, gently guiding them towards her. Logan couldn’t believe his eyes as his hands were brought towards her chest. Suddenly, his palms and fingers were blessed with a soft springy warmth as they were pressed right onto the surface of her breasts. Logan felt his heart leap, his hands drinking in the sensations as if it was a once in a lifetime chance.

“Don't be shy, enjoy yourself~”

Ryan smiled coyly as she used her hands to manipulate Logan's, puppetting them to start rubbing and touching her offered gifts. Logan’s hands were sandwiched between the hefty springiness of Ryan’s bosom and her delicate palms.

Just as Logan felt like he was acclimating to the situation, he felt Ryan's hands fall away from his, letting him move on his own accord. Logan’s hands continued to rub and grope like they had a mind of their own, exploring and claiming a new land. He started out careful and delicate, treating Ryan’s body like it was fragile and breakable, but soon enough he started to act with more certainty.

Logan’s hands started to indulge more earnestly, reveling in the magnificent sensations. The nervousness and uncertainty gave way to excitement and enjoyment. The softness beneath his hands, the warmth that emanated through Ryan’s sweater… Casey had been given the smallest taste this morning. Ever since that hug, her brain craved more. It was modified to crave more, regardless of Casey’s true wishes.

“Ryan, do you mind if I, like… Can I… Can I touch them directly?”

Logan's timid request caused a mischievous smile to spread across Ryan’s face.

“Of course you can~ It’s all a part of the experiment~ You can do anything you want to me~ Anything at all~”

Ryan’s hands slipped under the hem of her sweater, pulling it up and over her head. Majestic red hair cascaded back down as the sweater was removed, but Logan’s focus was elsewhere. Ryan’s gorgeous breasts, decorated by exquisitely designed red lingerie, an eye catching sight that refused to be ignored.

If Logan was thinking critically, he might have realized that such showy and presentable underwear proved that Ryan intended of doing this from the very start, but any chance of Logan thinking critically was extinguished as Ryan’s hands disappeared behind her back. A moment later, her bra unclipped and fell away. A pair of perfectly shaped tits with delicate pink nipples graced Logan's sight. Her skin was perfect, without a single flaw to be seen. It was like fresh untouched snow, so naturally beautiful that it inspired feelings of awe. Logan found himself frozen once more, stunned by the sight, but also something else. Nervousness? Uncertainty?

Maybe guilt for asking too much?

Ryan pressed her breasts together with the sides of her arms, emphasizing her invitation. Before he could overthink things, Logan returned his hands to Ryan’s chest, now without a sweater or bra to get in the way. The unfiltered, direct sensations filled Logan’s palms as he began touching, rubbing, and groping anew.

Logan explored Ryan's body, satisfying a repressed desire that hid deep below the surface. As he continued, an excitement grew within his chest, not just simple sexual arousal, but something more. It was a tint of immorality, a corruption to add to the thrill. This situation… this body… he had stolen it from Casey. He was a slug, a gross little pest that somehow hijacked an innocent woman's body, piloting it as his own. He would never admit it, but a sprinkling of guilt added a delectable, complex spice to this sinful flavor.

Even though Logan was thoroughly enjoying himself, he didn’t forget about his partner. Logan himself lacked experience handling breasts, but Casey didn’t. Dipping into Casey’s personal memories, Logan’s hands started to move with more purpose and refinement. The firsthand knowledge of a woman’s pleasure guided his hands with intent and precision.

The change had its effects, as Ryan started to show small, subtle changes in response. The sound of her breathing, a pink blush spreading across her cheeks, her seductive eyes silently asking Logan for more. It all influenced Logan on a subconscious level, encouraging him on a primal level. Both of their bodies were heating up.
Logan continued to work his magic, gently rubbing, pinching, and circling Ryan’s increasingly sensitive nipples. The movements were skilled and practiced, using Casey’s muscle memory from teasing her own nipples while masturbating. A shiver traveled down Logan’s back as he exploited Casey’s body, fully enjoying his ability to dig into Casey’s private, most personal depths, while she could do nothing to stop him.

“Mmm~ Logan, that feels so good~ But you can do more can’t you~?”

Ryan took the lead and gently pulled Logan towards her as she laid back in the bed, pulling him down next to her. Logan found his face tantalizingly close to Ryan’s chest, his mouth nearly touching one of her nipples. Her scent filled Logan’s nose, the sweet feminine perfume filling his head. His lips closed the gap, and started using his tongue to resume his earlier task.

Unlike Casey’s fingers, her tongue didn’t have any muscle memory to assist Logan this time, so it took a little bit of learning at first. Still, Logan’s mouth was capable of doing much more than his fingers. It wasn’t long before he was coaxing soft moans out of Ryan, using his mouth to lick, tease, and suck.

Logan’s heart thumping even harder, beating with a mix of excitement, arousal, and nervous energy as he continued this first-time experience. Every noise that slipped past Ryan’s lips tickled something deep inside Logan. Every subtle signal of Ryan’s pleasure did something to Casey’s brain, urging it to do more and more. Logan felt his body physically responding, growing more aroused by the minute, the heat growing hotter and hotter.

…

Ryan relished the combination of Casey’s energetic tongue driven by Logan’s enthusiasm. The sight of Casey, Ryan’s usually standoffish roommate, enthusiastically lapping at her chest aroused her like nothing else ever had. It was absurd in the best of ways, like an erotic dream made real. The way her hair and makeup got messier and messier as she kept going… The way she paid attention and learned the spots that made Ryan feel it the most… It was fulfilling a fantasy that Ryan never knew she wanted.

Ryan made sure to guide Logan with some positive reinforcement, strategically expressing signs of pleasure to reward him when he did well. Every stifled moan, twitch in her muscles, fluttering of her eyes, it was all wielded to train her test subject into becoming a servant for her pleasure.

Ryan continued to enjoy the feeling of Logan's tongue roughly running over her entire nipple, before pulling back to rapidly feather just the tip. It felt amazing, but was still ultimately just foreplay. She wouldn’t be fully satisfied with just this. Ryan desired more, she wanted everything from Logan and Casey.

“Mmm Logan~ You really know how to make a lady feel appreciated~ Why don't we keep going~?”

While lying down next to Logan, Ryan unzipped the side of her skirt, pulling it down to reveal red panties that matched the fancy brassiere that she stripped off earlier. She spoke again with a voice dripping in seduction.

“Care to do the honors~?”

Logan eagerly climbed over to Ryan's hips, slipping his fingers under the sides of the panties before pausing. Something in the back of his head was stopping him. Logan’s expression changed, growing conflicted and turbulent.

“Sorry… I- I don't think I can. There’s something- I mean… It- it just feels… wrong somehow.”

Logan looked crestfallen, as if he had failed Ryan. Ryan quickly switched back to her scientific mannerisms and inquired about it, sitting up in the bed and retrieving her phone to take notes. Ryan had anticipated that something like this might happen after hearing Logan’s earlier answers. How far Logan could push Casey past her limits remained unanswered. This could be critical in identifying some of the slug’s limits. Logan attempted to figure out and explain what happened at the same time.

“It's just, like, I know what I want. I'm a man, and you're a beautiful woman, like, fill in the rest. But like, it's Casey’s brain or something. Like, even though I want it, when I think of what’s going to happen… there's something up here disagreeing.” Logan tapped a finger against his temple, a mixture of frustration and confusion on his face. “And when I try to ignore it and push past it, I just feel super shitty… sorry Ryan…”

“It's not your fault Logan. You don’t have to force it. Here, let’s take this nice and easy, no need to rush.”

Ryan put her phone away then laid back down on the bed. She turned on her side and wordlessly extended an invitation to cuddle up with her. Logan gingerly accepted her invitation, laying down and entering her embrace. Logan’s new body was a bit smaller than Ryan’s, so she was enveloped by the taller woman. He could feel Ryan’s soft, bare breasts on his back, her thighs against his legs, and her arms around his sides. Logan’s original body towered over Ryan, over nearly everyone in fact, so the feeling of being cuddled by someone larger was completely new to him. He could feel something growing in his chest, not the heat and excitement like earlier, but something different. It was… comfortable… safe… As Logan relaxed into Ryan’s embrace and accepted her warmth all around him, she spoke softly into his ear.

“You did such a good job with that experiment. You’re pretty good at… all that, you know? No one's ever made me feel like that before. Let’s take it slow. With your abilities, we can fix everything holding you back. It'll just take a little work, and I'll be with you the entire way. Soon enough… you’ll be able to do whatever you want~”

Logan felt a shiver with those last words. He knew what Ryan had just implied. He knew what it meant for Casey. Ryan was trying to subtly push him in a questionable direction, but… but he wanted to be pushed by Ryan. Logan knew what he really wanted deep in his heart, but refused to acknowledge such a greedy and selfish desire. He knew it would only take the right opportunity to send him down a path he couldn’t come back from, a path that would change him for the worse, but he still desired it nonetheless… and Ryan was making it impossible to resist.