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This is one of the two stories I read as a kid in the 1950's, early 60's which forever locked me into sci-fi.

Spoiler alert! I want to identify a short story about a spaceman who ended up marooned alone on an empty planet of ruins. I recall the planet as desert like, all sand and wasteland and no water, with all the inhabitants long gone.

He finds the ruins of a town and the ruins of a house that still has power and begins to respond to him with water, food, a bed. Slowly he begins to train the house to supply his needs,though it nearly kills and poisons him at first. He is elated to realize he will survive until the rescue ship arrives, never realizing that it is actually he who is changing.

When the ship arrives it ends with him raising his snout to the air and hooting a greeting... something like that.

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  • 3
    Until/unless the OP positively identifies this as a duplicate we shouldn't be so quick to VTC.
    – Xantec
    Commented Jul 24, 2014 at 0:16
  • Possible duplicates here and here and here.
    – Some Guy
    Commented Jun 7, 2018 at 8:37

1 Answer 1

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As user14111 said in a deleted comment, this is van Vogt's "Enchanted Village".

The last lines are

"I've won!" thought Jenner, "The village has found a way!"

After a while he remembered something, and crawled back to the bathroom. Cautiously watching the ceiling, he eased himself backward into the shower stall. The yellowish spray came down, cool and delightful.

Ecstatically Jenner wriggled his four-foot tail and lifted his long snout to let the liquid wash away the food impurities that clung to his sharp teeth.

Then he waddled out to bask in the sun and listen to the timeless music.

I loved it, too.

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