Chapter #2Examine the jewel first by: DougTF Thomas picked up the jewel and almost dropped it immediately, because it did three things all at once, none of which were things gemstones were supposed to do in his experience. First, it started shining, like it was under a sparkling or strobing spotlight, even though it was simply in his hand. Next, it grew somewhat warm. Not even close to hot, not painful, just warm as if it had been sitting in the sun instead of a dimply lit nightstand. And lastly, it made a noise, like tinkling glass, but mixed with something else; something melodic, like a chorus heard at a great distance in dense fog. All of these things pretty much screamed to Thomas' mind to drop the stone and rush out of the room. But he didn't. Because he couldn't.
He was frozen in place, unable to release the stone, unable to move his feet. In fact, the his hand had only made it to just before his chest before he froze in place. He can see and hear (obviously since the whole sparkling and tinkling things) but he can't seem to move at all. He also can't speak as he tried to call out and could not. He starts hyperventilating except for one tiny little detail. He can't breath. Or rather, he isn't breathing.
Thomas mind drops a gear or two, headed for pure panic, but that too is tamped down, and likely because his heart skipped a beat. Actually, he is pretty sure it is skipping all of them at the moment, which further freaks him out, to the extent he can do so. Standing there, un-moving, not even breathing, in essence not alive in any way other than the fact his mind and senses are working just fine, thank you very much, Thomas is bewildered, and belatedly thinks to the note he had just read. His grandmom hoped THIS would occur? Did she leave the house and jewel as a punishment? Did he wrong her in some way? His mind is racing over why this might be happening to him, when abruptly, with no warning or outward sign, it simply stops.
Thomas finishes lifting the stone, which is no longer glowing or sparkling or shining or warm or singing or whatever the hell it was doing. No, now it is doing nothing except simply being a gemstone, though not a precious one as near as he can tell. He sets it down and looks around, back to breathing and being able to move, unsure what just happened. He runs his hands down his body and as badly scared and confused as he was a moment ago, he is now less scared but even more confused. What made him hallucinate like that? Is there some chemical in the air, or maybe on that gem? What just happened?
Thomas jumps once more at the sound of a voice, soft feminine, and he looks around, and then sees a mirror. He is at an angle, so he can't see his own reflection, but sees a beautiful blonde woman in an older outfit, like a jumper from the 70s maybe, and she looks, well, damned good. But looking in the room he sees no such woman, merely her reflection in the mirror. Is she a reverse vampire: invisible to the human eye but always leaves a reflection? What is this? But she speaks again, and this time he realizes she is speaking to him.
"Hello Thomas, I am glad you came, and accepted my testament to you, and even more glad the jewel kept my powers safe and that you were able accept them. I thought if any relative might have the gift, well, the capacity to accept the gift, it would be you. Inconvenient, obviously, but I am sure you will figure things out. Might honestly make things easier for you, being able to keep your true self hidden in this mediocre body of yours"
Thomas jumps and while he wants to run out of the room, run back to his car, forget this ever happened, he doesn't and his feet move almost as if of their own accord, standing before the mirror, so his reflection is next to the beautiful woman. Looking at her more carefully, he gasps "Grandmom? This...is that you, in the mirror?" She giggles softly "Yes it's me, but no, not in the mirror per se, dear and I won't be able to stay long...it's only because the gift transferred to you that I am here...indeed, I suppose I am not even really here, but an imprint of me, in the stone, in the magic..... and now, in you Thomas."
He stares at the reflection in the mirror, then back to the now normal stone in his hand. He then looks at his other hand and down at himself. "An imprint of you is, er, in me? And I have a gift...what gift?" She giggles once more "Witchcraft of course, you are a witch Thomas, well...no, not really, but we'll get there soon enough. I was a witch, and in a long line tracing back to Plymouth. We were never in Salem: all those poor women were innocent of any craft, but the idiot townsfolk were ever so quick to fear. But we meant them no harm, and I think it was because only women could use the power. So the men were jealous, fearful, angry. But you never were Thomas, you were such a good baby, I knew you had to have the gift."
Thomas laughs, both at the absurdity of this, but also at the content of this particular hallucination. "Ok, this has to be a dream or some sort of psychotic episode, but even then, um, pretty sure I don't have the gift since you just said men can not use the power and well, um" gesturing at himself "Ta-da" The woman laughs and the reflection steps toward him, moving sideways toward his reflection. "No...Ta-da indeed"
Thomas lets out a yell, but its a high pitched shriek, and he covers his mouth with had hands, stunned and shocked. The reflection of the woman stepped to him, and her reflection was in the mirror where his had been, as if she stepped in front of him: between him and the mirror. But, no, no one was there, but the reflection that had shown her smiling face now showed confusion. Then fear, then realization. Thomas was now her! He, somehow, just turned into a gorgeous woman. The reflection had covered her mouth, and indeed, now is simply moving as a true reflection of himself, but rather obviously he is no longer himself. "No...this is impossible.." he hears his voice, soft, feminine, maybe even sultry? He rushes to the bathroom and the mirror there shows the same thing, the stunning woman in the spandex jumper. He struggles to unzip it but does so, folding it back, revealing his chest, which freezes him in place. Eyes wide, he sees his reflection, a stunning woman, now partially naked, her ample and firm breasts heaving with her breath. His hands come to them, and he jumps at the touch, and how sensitive they are. Trembling in fright he slides the zipper lower and looks down, and then screeches and covers his mouth. No, her mouth. Thomas is now rather completely a woman.
She zips up the jumper and rushes back into the bedroom, standing before the mirror once more "Grandmom, come back, help me, I don't...I don't want to be a woman!" But the reflection is only her, her own expression, her own movements, even if the body is a far different one than the one she entered this room with just as few as ten minutes ago. Thomas is confused, scared, overwhelmed, but there is no denying it: he is a woman. And she feels...well, amazing.
Standing back up, she walks, belatedly realizing she is wearing heels and walking in them easily. Going before the mirror, and checking herself out, realizing just how stunning a woman she is. If she wasn't in this body, Thomas would definitely be interested in her, but that is very much not ok to even consider or contemplate! He doesn't want to be a woman and thinking about this body in THAT way is so completely.... wait. Her eyes widen and she shrieks again, because a warm glowly sensation had formed in her core, behind and slightly below her belly button and while Thomas has no idea what that sensation might be, his body knows, and its instincts feed into his mind, even as his male psyche deals with the whiplash of having all female inputs. His male self thinks this body is attractive, and apparently her new body thinks that memory of Thomas isn't too bad either. Another shriek, or scream, or simply shout of horrifying confusion escapes her lips, and she flops back onto the bed, overwhelmed and just needing a release.
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