:=: Jessica :=:

As soon as Jess woke, she was in a great mood. Today was the day! After classes were over, she'd help with the packing, and then Kara'd be coming back to the condo, to stay!

On top of that, Nikki had the day off work and had promised to loan Jess her car. So she didn't have to leave early for the bus, and in the afternoon they'd load the car with Kara's things and drive back home.

Jessica emerged from her bedroom with a smile on her face, but it quickly faded. The others were already up, and apparently the mood around the dining table wasn't so great.

Sam and Nikki didn't look too unhappy, but Cindy was sitting slumped forward with her head on the table, and a big frown on her face.

Jessica frowned, "Good morning... What's going on?"

Sam replied, "Good morning sis." Then without Cindy seeing, Sam gestured toward the girl and sort of indicated Jess should talk with her.

She got herself a cup of coffee, then she sat down at the table next to the teen. "Hey Cindy. What's up? You look a little down this morning..."

There was a deep sigh and a shrug, but nothing further.

Jess sipped her coffee, then said, "C'mon Cindy, something's obviously bothering you. What's on your mind?"

The girl finally pulled herself upright, then slumped back in the chair. She still had a frown on her face. "Once Kara's here, you won't wanna hang out with me any more. You'll be too busy with her."

Jessica sighed, "That's not true Cindy. There'll be times I just want to be with Kara, but there's also going to be times I'll want to hang out with you too. Or all three of us will probably spend a lot of time together. I'm not going anywhere."

Cindy just shrugged a little but kept frowning.

Jess knew this sort of thing would probably have been expected of someone younger than the small sixteen year old, but Cindy was a special case. When she'd been cursed by the Goddess, she wound up with a much smaller body, and her 'true' age was a bit of a mystery. She had paperwork that said she was sixteen, but she looked younger, and sometimes acted younger too. Though she'd originally been a twenty-two year old jock, and occasionally she still acted more like a young adult.

Jessica thought for a bit, then decided, "Tell you what. I'm going to skip classes today, and you and me can spend the day together. How's that sound? We can go out, get brunch if you like? Maybe some shopping, a little retail therapy is always good?"

The girl's eyes seemed to light up a bit at that, and she smiled slightly, "Ok Jess... Thanks."

Jessica looked at Nikki, "Do you mind if I take the car to the mall, instead of university?"

Nicole shook her head. "I don't have any plans today, so you can have it. Just be careful with it, ok?"

Jess nodded, "Of course. Thanks Nikki." She then got out her phone and sent a text to Kara, letting her know that she'd be missing class today but promised to be there in the afternoon to help with the packing and moving.

The mall wouldn't be open for a while yet, so she and Cindy wound up spending the next hour or so infront of the tv, playing video-games.

That seemed to help as well, and by the time they were ready to head out, the girl's mood seemed almost back to normal.

Using Nikki's car it took less than fifteen minutes to reach the Pen Centre, the largest mall in the region. It was about half past ten in the morning, and fortunately the place wasn't too crowded yet. It was the first Friday in December, there was tinny holiday music playing, and most of the stores had decorations up. Jess knew the mall would probably be a lot busier by this afternoon, and weekends would likely be packed.

They spent over an hour wandering around window shopping, talking, and looking in various stores. Around half past eleven Jess asked, "Are you getting hungry Cindy? Wanna think about lunch, or brunch or whatever?"

Cindy agreed, and the two ended up at one of the restaurants attached to the mall.

They settled into a booth together, and Cindy sighed as she realized she'd been given the kid's menu. "I really look that young, huh?"

Jess shrugged, "Sometimes? But other times you look more like your age. I think it depends on your expression, and how you're dressed." She then offered her menu, "Here, you can have mine."

The small teen shook her head and sighed, "I couldn't eat a whole 'grown-up' sized meal anyways."

"Maybe, but you might like the selections better. The kids options are probably limited."

"Thanks Jess." Cindy took the other menu and started looking through it. She commented, "When you say sometimes I look my age, you mean sixteen, right?"

Jessica nodded, "Yeah."

Cindy shook her head slightly, "I still know I'm really twenty-two, Jess. I just look young. The ID and stuff, I dunno, that's just a 'believable' age to make it official or whatever."

Jess was quiet for a bit, watching her companion. Finally she asked, "Does it bother you? That you look so young, or that people treat you like a teen?"

Cindy shrugged. "I'm used to it. Like, I'm used to looking like this? It's who I am now. And I guess being treated like a teen isn't so bad, but I don't like being treated like a little kid."

Jessica nodded, "Yeah, I can understand that." She didn't want to say it, but she knew sometimes the small teen acted like a younger kid, and that was part of the problem. She wasn't sure if Cindy was even aware when she was doing it, though.

The waitress soon returned and took their orders, then came back a few moments later with their drinks, and eventually their food.

As they ate, they talked more. Jess commented, "I wonder how things are going to go with the holidays... It'll be weird introducing you to our folks."

Cindy asked, "What are you gonna tell them?"

Jess smiled, "Well we sure won't be able to pretend you're our cousin from out of town. I think mom and dad would both be suspicious if we tried to claim one of them had a niece they didn't know about."

Cindy giggled at that, and Jess was happy to hear the girl laughing.

"Maybe you could use magic, and just make me become part of your family?" Cindy suggested.

Jessica sighed a little, "I'd actually be ok with that, but Sam wouldn't. She wouldn't want to do that to our family again." She then added, "If it was up to me though, I'd be ok having you as my little sister."

Cindy stuck her tongue out then corrected her, "Physically smaller, younger looking, but still older sister."

Jess grinned, "Yeah, that's what I meant."

As expected, Cindy barely got through half her sandwich and fries, but she seemed to enjoy it. Jess was glad the girl's mood was still improving.

After eating, they decided to wander the mall again, doing some more window-shopping. Eventually they both felt a need, and started towards the nearest public washrooms, which were down a small service hallway off the main concourse.

The two of them were just about to turn down the side corridor when their path was blocked by a stocky young man in a Brock-U jacket.

Jessica silently swore to herself as she recognized him. He was one of Scott's dude-bro friends, one of the jocks who'd given Kara and herself a hard time in the past.

Jess didn't know his name but she knew he was an asshole. He was about 5'9", and a bit heavyset, maybe 210 pounds. He had a thick neck and broad shoulders. He was muscular, and looked like the kind of guy who enjoyed getting in fights. He had brown eyes and very short dark blond hair.

Jessica tried to guide Cindy around the guy but he stepped infront of them again. "Where's your boyfriend, red? He finally dump you?"

Jess knew he was talking about Kara, who almost always wore mens' clothes. She didn't actually look masculine, but it was one of the ways these jerks tried to antagonize Kara and herself.

Jess was about to say something, when Cindy spoke up.

"We're not in the mood for your bullshit today, Tom. Just get lost, ok?"

The jock looked down at the small girl. Cindy was just barely five feet tall and 90 pounds. Then he looked back at Jess and sneered, "Boyfriend dumped you, so you're dating children now?"

Cindy asked, "What are you, jealous? You wouldn't be interested anyways Tom. Jess and Kara are both girls." She then said to Jessica, "Tom's so far in the closet he's halfway to Narnia."

Jess was surprised by the girl's behaviour, and said, "Cindy that's enough. Tom, just leave us alone ok?" She put a hand on Cindy's shoulder and they quickly moved around the jock and down the side corridor towards the washrooms.

Once in the ladies' room, she said quietly, "Cindy it's not a good idea to antagonize people like that. Just ignore them."

Cindy shrugged as the two of them went into neighbouring stalls. "I know him, Jess. Or used to, I guess. He's a bully, just like Scott was. Don't put up with their crap."

Jessica sighed, then asked, "You weren't scared of him? Usually you're more... timid?"

Cindy was quiet for a moment, then replied "Usually, yeah. But he just rubbed me the wrong way. Maybe it's cos I used to know him or something? Or cos he reminds me how I used to be."

When they were both finished and cleaned up, the two emerged from the washroom, but came to a sudden halt. That asshole Tom was waiting for them just outside the washroom door.

Before they could even react he demanded, "Who the fuck is this kid and how's she know my name?"

Jessica cursed, "Tom, please just get out of our way." She tried to lead Cindy around him.

He moved to block them again, and stated "Not till I get answers, bitch! Why's she saying I'm gay?!"

Cindy was looking angry again, and rolled her eyes. "For fuck sake Tom, everyone can see you checking the guys out in the locker room! The only reason nobody says anything is cos you're the best defenceman on the team."

Jess saw the expression on the guy's face as it shifted. A split second of shock, then more anger.

"Fuck you kid! What are you, someone's sister? Who the fuck are you?!"

Jessica was starting to lose her patience now too, "Damn it Tom, just leave us alone!"

That got his attention back on her and away from Cindy. Instead of more yelling though, he got quieter, but more threatening. "You think I don't know what you did, huh? I know about you and Scott. He showed me the pictures, told me about that night. You had him killed, didn't you? Payed someone to bump him off and dump him in the canal? I could go to the cops, bitch."

Jess felt a shock like she'd been slapped. She'd never considered that Scott might have shared the pictures with anyone else. She'd only seen the one he sent her. What had Tom seen? Did he still have copies of them? Her mind was racing.

Cindy then spoke up again, "Holy shit Tom! Were you gay for Scott? Is that why you're being such a prick right now? You think Jess killed your boyfriend?"

There was a split second, like the span of a single heartbeat, where Jess could see the jock's face go white, then the next moment it was red with anger. He reached out, grabbing at Cindy as he growled, "That's it, bitch!"

The small girl yelped and jumped back, and Jess moved sideways to get infront of Cindy, to shield her.

Tom wound up grabbing Jessica by the shoulders, as if he was about to shove or toss her out of his way. Jess could also feel Cindy's hand on her back, the girl was hiding behind her.

She was about to tell Tom to back off, when she felt the magic. Not just a little tingle, but this hit her like she'd just touched a live wire. Her whole body burned with energy for a moment, and there was a flash of white light infront of her.

Then it was gone, and Jess was standing there blinking. She seemed to be mostly fine, though she felt exhausted, as if she'd just done a 50-meter sprint. Whatever just happened didn't seem to affect her, apart from leaving her feeling drained.

Tom however, wasn't so lucky. Standing infront of Jess was now a stunned-looking teen girl.

In fact it appeared as if Tom's younger sister had stolen his clothes. The girl's height was somewhere between Cindy's five-foot-even and Jess's five-foot-four. The large jock's clothes hung off the girl's smaller frame. She had the same dark eyes, but her dark blonde hair was now much longer, hanging about halfway down her back.

"Fuck!" Jessica gasped. She grabbed the girl's jacket with her left hand, and her right hand reached back and found Cindy's shoulder. Jess quickly guided both of them back into the ladies room.

The former jock didn't resist, he just stumbled forward as Jess pulled him. The three wound up infront of the counter and sinks, and Jess turned to check Cindy. "Are you ok?"

Cindy looked pale and exhausted, and was holding her hand against the side of her head like she had a headache. She whispered, "I need to lie down Jess... I don't feel good..."

Tom was finally starting to recover, and turned slowly, till seeing the mirror. There was a high-pitched squeal, then he put his hands over his mouth and stood there, eyes wide, staring in shock at the girl in the mirror. He stared for a second, then yelped in a high-pitched whiney voice, "What did you freaks do to me?!"

Jessica looked back at him. She had no idea how this happened. Rubbing her forehead she asked, "Cindy... Do you know what just happened?"

Cindy sighed, leaning against the wall. Her voice was weak as she answered, "I dunno Jess... I think... Maybe I did it?"

Tom looked on the verge of panic, and gasped "Well fucking un-do it! Holy shit! I can't believe this is happening!"

Cindy shook her head, "I dunno how... I really need to lie down..."

Jess cursed and said, "Ok. Tom, you're coming with us. I know some people who might be able to help. Cindy, we're going home now."

The former jock whined, "I don't wanna go anywhere with you two!"

Jess was finally starting to bounce back from the exhaustion, and she was getting angry again. She snapped, "Tom, look at the fucking mirror and listen up. Keep your mouth shut and come with us, and maybe we can fix this. Or stay here and fend for yourself. You've got five seconds to think that through."

Tom gulped and looked at his reflection again, his eyes slowly widening. He nodded, "Ok..."

Jess took Cindy's hand and Tom followed right behind. He had to keep one hand sort of holding onto his pants to stop them from falling down, and he shuffled his feet in his now-oversized boots. The three of them walked through the mall, then out into the parking lot, and back to Nikki's car. There were a few quizzical stares, but no-one tried to stop them or talk to them.

The three of them climbed into the car, Cindy in the passenger seat and Tom in the back. Jess could see there were tears in the former jock's eyes as he fumbled with the seatbelt.

Jess started the car, and soon enough they were heading back towards the condo. After a minute or two, there were some sobs from the back seat as their passenger start to break down and cry.

Jessica sighed, "Hang in there Tom. Hopefully we'll get this sorted out."

Cindy added quietly, "You'll be ok. It's just hormones and emotions. You'll get used to it."

Tom sobbed, "I don't wanna get used to this..."

:=: Samantha :=:

Sam and Nikki were both relaxing on the sofa, when the apartment door opened. Samantha looked over to see Cindy walking in, followed by an unfamiliar girl wearing oversized clothes, and then Jessica came in last, closing the door behind her. Cindy didn't say anything, she just went straight to her bedroom.

The mystery girl looked like she'd been crying. She was wearing mens clothes that were ridiculously large for her. Sam noticed the Brock logo on the jacket, and she felt her stomach go cold. Something magical had happened, and they had another mess on their hands.

Jess guided the unfamiliar girl to the dining table and pulled out a chair. She motioned, "Have a seat."

The girl looked to be around sixteen, and she was about an inch shorter than Jessica. It was hard to get an idea of her figure, as her clothes were miles too big. She had dark blonde hair that rivalled Nikki's in length and straightness, and her dark eyes were red from tears. Her complexion looked slightly tanned.

Nicole got a bottle of water out and set it on the table next to the girl, while Sam asked her sister, "Who is this, Jess?"

Jessica sighed and replied, "His name is Tom. He was one of Scott Matthews's friends. One of the jocks, from university."

Sam tried to keep the shock off her face. As far as she knew, only she and Nikki had the power to change someone like this. The Goddess could too of course, but She needed to use Nikki's body to interact with the human world, and Nikki had been here with Sam all morning.

She looked at her sister, "When did this happen? And, how?"

Jess rubbed her forehead, "It was about 20 or 30 minutes ago? Standing infront of the washrooms at the Pen Centre... I don't think anyone saw. I don't know how... Cindy said something, she seemed to think she might have been responsible?"

Sam frowned, "Well we need to talk with her too, why isn't she here with us?"

Jessica sighed, "Whatever happened, it left Cindy with a headache and feeling exhausted. She really needed to lie down. I think we should give her a little while to recover."

Samantha sighed but nodded, and Nicole asked, "Jess, can you fill us in on how uh, Tom here, got involved with you and Cindy?"

Jess replied, "He was being a belligerent asshole and wouldn't leave us alone. Cindy got frustrated and mouthed off, and apparently Tom is about as emotionally mature as Scott was, and he wouldn't back down. It escalated, and he tried to grab Cindy. I got in between them, then there was a flash. It felt like I got hit by lightning or something, and then..." She shrugged and gestured at the blonde girl.

Nikki nodded slowly.

Jessica then said, "I have to check on Cindy." She headed for the girl's bedroom.

Tom had been silent through the discussion, and had more tears in his eyes. He finally asked, "So can you guys fix me? The redhead said you could..."

Sam sighed and told him, "We'll try. For now we're still figuring out what happened."

Nikki then motioned to the bottle of water, "That's for you. Have some water, try not to let yourself get too uptight."

Sam then went to Cindy's door and looked inside. The girl was laying on her bed, curled up on her side. Mo was on the bed at her feet, and Jess was standing next to the bed.

Sam motioned Jess over, then whispered, "Is she ok?"

Jessica replied quietly, "She has a bad headache and she's exhausted, but she's managing I think."

Sam sighed, "Do you think she's up for talking with me and Nikki?"

Jess said "Yeah, just go easy on her, sis. Like, don't yell?"

Sam motioned to her girlfriend, who soon joined them in Cindy's room.

Nikki leaned against the wall and Jess was standing by the foot of the bed, while Sam sat on the edge of the bed.

"Hi Cindy. I know you're not feeling great right now but we need to ask a few questions, ok?"

Cindy nodded slightly and said, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do it." She looked and sounded exhausted.

Samantha frowned, "What makes you think you caused this?" All of them knew Cindy was unable to work magic. And even if she could, they didn't know any magic that would have let her do that.

Cindy sighed a little. "I was scared and angry... Tom was being a prick... Yelling and stuff... I said a spell... I didn't think it would work though."

Nikki asked, "What spell did you say, Cindy? One of the ones you've seen us use?"

The girl shook her head slightly. "It was one I sorta invented... From the transformation spell you made? I figured out... I changed a few bits around, so I'd control the spell? I wanted to turn Tom into a girl like me... And it worked..."

Samantha noticed her sister was looking surprised, and a little guilty about something. She'd have to question Jess about that later. For now, she looked back at the teen. "You created a spell yourself? You figured all that out, by yourself?"

Cindy shrugged a little, then nodded. "Yeah... When you were all working on the clairvoyance one. I was bored, and I read the other stuff Jess had written, about that other spell. It wasn't a big deal."

Sam frowned, "But you can't work magic. The Goddess said you couldn't, until you were eighteen..."

Jessica then rubbed her forehead and sighed, "Sam. Cindy's twenty-two... Her ID says sixteen, and she looks even younger, but... Despite everything the Goddess did to her, she's still really twenty-two."

Sam bit her lip as she thought about that. Maybe there was a loophole, maybe Cindy could work magic, but it still didn't explain how she got the power to transform the jock.

Nikki then said, "Sam? We should be able to fix this. Just use our transformation spell, and Tom should return to normal."

Samantha nodded. "You stay here Cindy. We'll try and fix this and then we can talk more later."

Out in the livingroom, they had the other teen move to the sofa. Nikki told Tom to relax, close his eyes, and focus on being back to his normal self again.

Sam and Nikki held hands as they channeled the power of the Goddess, and worked the spell. Sam could feel the power flowing through, but when it was finished, nothing had happened. Tom was still a teen girl.

Seeing the confusion on Sam and Nikki's faces, Tom started to cry again.

Samantha frowned, "That should have worked. Nikki what do you think?"

Nicole looked puzzled, but then her back straightened and her eyes grew brighter. She turned and walked back to Cindy's room.

Sam followed, and Jessica did as well, both of them wanting to know what the Goddess had planned. Sam suspected Jess also wanted to make sure nothing happened to Cindy, probably worried the kid was in trouble again.

In Cindy's room, the Goddess stated, "In altering your transformation spell, Cindy has in fact created a curse. That is why your attempt failed, Samantha. Only Cindy can reverse what she has done."

Cindy was curled up on her bed still, but her eyes were wide. She whispered, "I'm sorry... I didn't know... I didn't mean to..."

Sam then asked, "So Cindy just needs to what, cast that again and reverse the effect?" She then added, "How did she get enough power to even do that, though?"

The Goddess answered the second question first, "All of you gather and store magical energy. That is how you cast the cantrips and smaller spells. Larger spells require more power, and require more time to store the power before-hand. It has been nearly three weeks since she joined us, and she has not cast any spells in that time. She had a reserve of power within her, it is now spent."

Jessica then asked, "Could she have taken power from me too? She was touching me, and after it happened I was sort of exhausted for a couple minutes..."

The Goddess nodded. She then said, "In three to four weeks, if she does no other magic, Cindy will have accumulated enough power to cast her spell again, and reverse the effects."

Jessica sighed, rubbing her forehead. "So... Tom is stuck like that for three or four weeks? Until Cindy has the power to undo the spell?"

Samantha frowned, and asked the Goddess, "You could give Cindy the power to do it now, though, right? Or You could just dispell it Yourself right now?"

The Goddess looked at Samantha and replied with a slight shrug, "I could, but... Why would I?"

Sam felt her stomach sink. She couldn't think of any good reasons the Goddess would want to. She'd probably heard everything Jess had said, about Tom being an asshole and trying to grab Cindy.

Cindy then asked, "What's gonna happen to Tom?"

The Goddess replied, "She will have to wait until you are able to correct your mistake. Or... If she wishes, I could be merciful and alter reality to adapt to her new form. So her family would recognize and accept her as she is now."

Samantha frowned, as Jess asked, "So Tom's choices are, be a girl for a month, or be a girl forever?"

Jessica went quiet again when the Goddess gave her a look.

"The choice is a month without friends and family, a month without a home. A month of hardship and slow painful adjustment. A month of being searched for and mourned by her family, during her absence. Or instant acceptance of her situation by herself and her family."

Samantha sighed. Both options seemed harsh to her. But if Tom was cut from the same cloth as Scott had been, she supposed the Goddess was being generous. Cindy hadn't had those options, and if not for Jessica's sympathy, she'd have stayed homeless and lost.

The Goddess then stated, "The girl has forty-eight hours to decide."

Nikki then slumped back against the wall and sighed. "That didn't go so well..."

Sam shook her head. She was frustrated. She knew they wouldn't be able to kick Tom out, so she was stuck with another 'Cindy' until Sunday afternoon, or worse, until the first week of January.

Jessica looked at Sam and Nikki, then asked quietly, "Who wants to break the news to our guest?"

Cindy slowly sat up and sighed, "I will. Tom was Scott's friend... And all this is my fault."

Samantha was surprised, but impressed that the young teen was taking responsibility.

"Are you feeling up for that, Cindy?" Jess was still worried about her.

"Yeah... It's gonna suck but I gotta." Cindy sighed again, then asked, "I guess he's gonna hafta stay in here with me, huh? Sleepover or something?"

Samantha nodded, "Thank you Cindy."

Jess suggested, "When I go to get Kara, I'll pick up one of those inflatable mattresses, so at least he doesn't have to sleep on the floor or whatever. Your bed's not really big enough to share, eh Cindy?"

The girl nodded, "Yeah. Thanks Jess." She then slipped out of bed and headed out of her room, with Sam, Nikki, and Jess following behind her.

The three of them held back, and watched. Cindy stopped infront of her former friend. Sam could see Tom had been crying more while he'd sat here alone. The former jock looked at Cindy and asked, "Well? What's going on?"

Cindy shrugged a little and said, "Well, you were a world class asshole Tom, and now you're paying the price. Nobody can turn you back right now. You gotta make a choice, and when I tell you your options, they're both gonna sound pretty bad."

Tom sighed, "What... What's the options?"

Cindy stated, "First option - you're stuck like that for a month. It's gonna take like four weeks before we can fix you. A lot's gonna happen in that time, too. Your family's gonna be looking for you. You can't just go home though, they won't recognize you, and won't believe you if you try to tell them who you are. You'll miss the holidays. It'll be January before you're finally back to normal and can go home... And that's assuming you still wanna be fixed by then. You might get used to this a lot sooner than you think."

Sam stayed quiet, but she was surprised how blunt Cindy was being. The kid wasn't exaggerating or lying, but she definitely wasn't sugar-coating anything.

Tom looked like he was going to start to cry again, and shook his head, "I'll never get used to this... I want to be fixed..." He sighed, "What's the other option?"

Cindy replied, "They can change things so that your family recognizes and accepts you like you are right now, and you'll accept it too. You go home like this and enjoy the rest of your new life."

Tom looked shocked, "What the fuck kind of choice is that?!"

Cindy shrugged, and paraphrased what the Goddess had said earlier. "A girl for a month, with no family, no home, a month of suffering and slow painful adjustment. Or a girl forever, but with a family and a home and being happy and accepted. That's the choice. And you have until Sunday afternoon to decide."

There were tears in his eyes again as Tom shook his head, "No... This is bullshit..."

Cindy sighed, then asked "You really liked Scott Matthews, right? I mean, as a friend? You were there with him at the sports bar that night when he disappeared."

Tom frowned, "Yeah, so?"

Cindy stated, "Tomorrow'll be four weeks for me. I didn't get the choice you've been offered. I lost all my friends and family. I had to go through the slow painful adjustment, every day getting a little more used to this stuff. Heck, last week I even got my first period! But you know what? I'm happy like this now, and I never ever wanna go back. Think about that."

Samantha's eyes widened slightly, she glanced at Nikki and Jess. They were both surprised as well, but Jessica also looked a little proud.

Tom looked confused, shaking his head. "What? What are you saying?"

Cindy rolled her eyes, "Tom you dumbass, how do you think I knew your name? And all that other stuff about you? Scott didn't really die. I'm where you're gonna be in four weeks."

Cindy then sighed. She reached out and grabbed Tom's hand, "Now c'mon, you're staying in my room. I'd offer you some clothes but I doubt mine will fit."

Jessica spoke up, "He's closer to my size, I'll pick out a few things he can borrow for the weekend." She then headed for her bedroom to get some clothes together.

Meanwhile Tom was just looking stunned, and didn't resist as Cindy started pulling him to her bedroom. As they went past Sam and Nikki, Cindy was saying, "You'll be fine, you'll get used to it. And being a girl is actually kinda cool and fun! Oh, that's Mo the cat. She's ok, don't mind her..."

Nikki looked at Sam and shrugged, "It's going to be an interesting weekend."

Sam just shook her head and sighed. "I'm going to need a vacation or something..."

:=: Kara :=:

Kara had almost everything packed up, when Jessica arrived at around half past four.

Jess greeted her with a hug, and apologized, "Sorry I'm late. I had to pick up a few things on the way here."

Kara nodded, "S'ok. What was the emergency today, that had you missing class again?"

Jessica sighed, "Cindy..."

Kara rolled her eyes. Of course, if there'd been a crisis, the young teen had to have been involved.

"What'd she do this time?"

Jess hesitated, then said, "I'll tell you when we're in the car."

Kara figured that meant things did not go well.

It only took them two trips to get all her stuff down and packed into Nikki's little Rio. Kelly wasn't around, but Kara had already told her roommate that she was moving out.

Finally the two of them got into the small black car, and Jess started driving them to the condo.

Once they were on the road, Kara asked "So what happened with Cindy?"

Jessica sighed, "She was a little moody this morning, so I took her to the mall. Kind of a day off for just the two of us? It was going ok, right up until we ran into one of Scott's old friends. Big guy named Tom? He was one of the group that used to pester us and stuff."

Kara frowned, "I know him. Kind of stocky, muscular guy. He's almost as bad as Scott was. I hope he didn't cause you too much trouble?"

Jess sighed, "He did. And it rubbed Cindy the wrong way, so she started shooting back. I don't actually know if the stuff she was saying about him was true, but holy heck that girl can wind people up bad if she wants."

Kara couldn't help herself, chuckling "Oh that would have been a sight. Giving one of them a taste of their own medicine. How'd it end?"

Jess shook her head, "Worse than you could imagine..." She hesitated, then asked, "Remember when Cindy had an idea for changing the transformation spell around?"

Kara nodded, "Yeah?"

"Well she used it on Tom. And it worked. And it's not just a spell, it's a curse, that nobody can unlock but her... She turned him into a teen girl."

Kara's eyes went wide, "Holy shit!" Then she frowned, "Wait, Cindy can't cast spells, she can't work magic till she's eighteen..."

Jess shook her head, "Except, Cindy really twenty-two, remember? She looks young, and her ID all says she's sixteen, but she really is older. I don't know if that was an oversight, or the Goddess was just messing with her..." She sighed, then added "Anyways, the Goddess didn't feel like helping out, either. She said Tom's got two choices. Stay like this for a month, and then maybe Cindy can undo the curse. Or stay a girl forever, and the Goddess will fix it so Tom's family accepts him back as a girl and everything.

"Woah." Kara didn't know what else to say, but those were two rough choices for the bully to face.

Jess then added, "Oh and Cindy told Tom who she used to be, and sort of hinted that after a month, Tom might not even want to be changed back. Cindy doesn't."

Kara then asked, "So where's Tom going to go?"

Jessica sighed, "He's spending the weekend in Cindy's room. I don't know what'll happen after that. Sorry Kara, I know you're kind of awkward around strangers... That's one of the stops I had to make this afternoon, to get an air mattress. We won't be having a little celebration tonight either... I think we're just going to order in some pizza or something."

Kara sighed, then nodded. "Ok, I understand..." She then asked, "Is Cindy in trouble or anything?"

Jess shook her head, "No, actually. I'm not sure why not, but the Goddess didn't seem too bothered."

Kara frowned, "Knowing Cindy can fling curses around makes me a bit uneasy."

"She'd never use it against any of us, Kara." Jess smiled. "She likes us, and she's one of us."

Soon enough they were at the condo, and parked in their underground spot. She and Jess grabbed most of her stuff, and the two shopping bags in the back seat. They'd have to come back for the rest, but that could wait till tomorrow.

Sam and Nikki were sitting on the sofa together, and greeted them when Kara and Jessica came in.

She and Jessica brought her stuff into their bedroom, then Jess knocked at the Cindy's door. Kara hung back to watch. Cindy opened the door partway, not enough for Kara to see anyone else inside.

Jess handed the girl the two bags, saying, "This one's the air-mattress and a pump. Here's some underwear, a toothbrush, and some other stuff for her"

Cindy took the bags then nodded, "Thanks Jessica."

Jess then went with Kara into their bedroom, and the two of them started to unpack Kara's things and put her clothes away.

The walk-in closet was wonderful, and they were setting it up the same as Sam and Nikki had done. Jessica's stuff was on one side, Kara's on the other.

Eventually Sam ordered pizza, and Nikki set the table. Sam wouldn't let Nicole offer anyone wine tonight, so the choices were water or soda. Kara didn't mind, but Jess and Nikki both looked a bit grumpy about it.

Jess then knocked at Cindy's door, "Dinner's ready."

Kara took her seat next to Jessica. Sam and Nikki were sitting at either end of the table, like parents. And then the other two girls emerged and joined them.

Cindy was looking a bit tired and stressed. She'd been taking after Samantha in terms of how she dressed, sticking to leggings and long loose tops. Today she was wearing green leggings, and a dark purple top with light blue butterflies on the front.

Kara watched the other teen closely. This girl was looking very shy and awkward, and kept her eyes down, not looking at anyone. Kara estimated she was an inch or so shorter than Jess or Nikki. She looked about sixteen.

She was wearing a pair of navy blue track pants, and a white t-shirt with the Brock logo on the chest. Kara was pretty sure the clothes belonged to Jessica. The girl filled them out pretty well, Kara noted. Her hips were wide and curvy and from what Kara could see, she had a nice behind. She was somewhat busty too, and her waist was narrow, which gave her a rather attractive figure.

The new girl had long straight hair, similar to Nikki's except dark blonde instead of black. The girl's skin was lightly tanned, and she had brown eyes.

The two of them sat down in the chairs opposite Kara and Jess.

Cindy then leaned over and nudged the other girl slightly and whispered, "Go on, tell them."

The girl gulped a little then said softly, "Uh... so... for now I guess... You can call me Tanya..."

Samantha nodded, "That's a nice name, Tanya."

Jess agreed, "It's cute, and it suits you."

Tanya just shrugged slightly, still looking down.

Kara stayed quiet as everyone dug into the pizza. It wasn't so much that she was feeling shy, but she was watching Tanya and Cindy, and didn't really have much to say.

Tanya didn't seem to have much of an appetite, only having a single slice. Cindy ate one and part of a second, which was about as much as she could handle. They both had cola with dinner, and then as soon as they were done, they headed back for Cindy's bedroom.

Before Cindy could follow her friend into the room, Samantha asked her "Cindy? How are things with Tanya?"

The girl sighed and came back to stand next to the table. "She's depressed. She'd rather disappear or hide or something... I know what she's going through. I went through all that stuff too, before Jessica found me. I'm trying to help but... It's hard to to be sympathetic all the time. She's acting like it's the end of the world and like she's the poor innocent victim and stuff."

Nikki asked quietly, "Are we using she/her pronouns for Tanya now?"

Cindy shrugged, "I guess so? It goes with the name." She added, "If I could, I'd make the choice for her and just have her accept it all and get it over with. She's gonna wind up being used to it anyways."

Kara frowned, and asked "What makes you so sure she'll get used to it?"

The small teen shrugged again, "I did. It was only about a week for me to start feeling ok with looking like this. And less than two weeks before I knew I didn't wanna go back."

Jess asked, "I thought the Goddess did something though, to make you accept things?"

Cindy shook her head. "I thought so too at first, but after I got to join you all, I understood it better. There's other stuff She did to my head, but not that." She then shrugged, "That's why I'm sure Tanya will accept it eventually too. It'll just be better for her, for everyone, if she takes the offer & gets it over with."

Samantha then asked, "Are you ok sharing your room with her, Cindy? Would you rather Tanya go into the guest room and leave you alone?"

Cindy sighed, "It's my fault, my responsibility. As long as we don't kill each other over the weekend, we'll be fine. I'm gonna keep trying to convince her to make the choice though."

Jessica nodded, "Good luck. If you need anything, I'm right next door."

Cindy smiled, "Thanks Jess." She then bid them all good night, and headed back to her room and closed the door again behind her.

Jessica looked at Kara and gave her a little smile, "Welcome to the family, huh?"

Kara couldn't help but chuckle. "Still less dysfunctional than mine."

The three of them finished eating without much conversation. They all cleaned up together and finally, Kara followed Jess back into their bedroom.

It was a somewhat anticlimactic ending to her big move, but Kara didn't mind. She didn't need a party, and it was obvious Samantha was very stressed, and so was Cindy. Actually even Nikki and Jessica seemed a bit uptight after everything that had happened today.