Marcus didn’t know what to do. He kept trying to shave it, and within an hour, it was back, thicker and wilder than before. He decided to just let it go and see what would happen–and was thankful when the growth slowed and appeared to stop leaving him with a massive wiry beard coating his face.

That spell had been a horrible idea. He’d wanted a beard, but one he could control. He found the spellbook and flipped through until he found the counter curse and started casting it…but the strangest thing happened. His beard began twisting against his face, contorting his lips and jaw into slight changes. He lost control of the spell, strange syllables falling from his mouth, making something new.

He could feel the power resonate within him, and he felt itchy. Looking at his body, he saw hair filling in the rest of his smooth form in a thick layer, and there was nothing he was going to be able to do about it. The beard had more than a mind of its own–and there was no telling what Marcus’s new sentient pelt might do with him.