The Convention, The Necklace, And Me free porn video

The Convention, The Necklace, And Me By MellissaLynn "Well, kids, we're on the road!" I said happily. I was taking my sons, my niece, and a couple of their friend with me to Comic Expo Chicago, one of the major comic book conventions in the United States. My friends all told me I needed to have my head examined, bringing five teenagers with me to such an event. Personally, I was looking forward to it. They all cheered as we left behind the borders of my hometown and pulled onto Interstate 55. Everyone settled in for the drive (about three hours, give or take a few stops along the way), and I fiddled with my MP3 player. It was a peaceful, uneventful drive, and I let my mind wander a bit. We'd all decided to do the 'costume' thing for the convention, and a large part of the luggage was the packages and bags for our various outfits. I felt a small thrill of anticipation as I thought about my own costumes. I'd thought hard on my choices, and hopefully, I'd do well with them and have some fun. We stopped at a small caf? just outside of Joliet for some lunch. There was a small souvenir stand nearby, and we wandered over to look around and stretch a bit before taking off again. My sons Michael and George and their friend Joe rapidly grew bored, but my niece Olivia and Michael's girlfriend Kate prowled the place, looking especially intently at the Native American jewelry displays. Olivia summoned me over to look at a particular piece, a necklace decorated with several small crystals. As an amateur rock-hound, as well as a practicing Wiccan, I had a special interest in crystals. "This is nice," I said as I took the necklace by the chain. I held the pendant up to the light, watching the refraction as the crystals caught and bent the illumination. I carefully placed the pendant in my hand, ready to let go at an instant's notice if the stones for some reason didn't agree with me. All I felt was a warm glow of contentment. I decided that I wanted the necklace; it would work well with one of my costumes. After a few moments of bartering with the proprietor, an older lady who still looked trim and fit, we agreed to a price and she bagged the necklace for me. The girls and I looked a few minutes more, then gathered the boys up and got back on the road. We arrived in Park Grove, one of the western suburbs, around 2:30 in the afternoon. I'd scored a great deal on two adjoining hotel rooms, and we got settled in quickly. We were in a slight hurry, as Preview Night started at four. Preview Night was the bonus that ticket holders who paid for the whole event received. It allowed us to go in for a few hours prior to the start of the convention and get some of the early bargains. I picked up fourteen books to complete a run on a series, as well as five free books and a box to hold them all in. The kids scouted out Artists' Alley and the gaming areas. We went back to the rooms and had a light, late dinner. As the show was opening early for multiple-day attendees, and I wanted to be there early, we all went to bed around ten. I lay in bed, watching the news, and thought again about the necklace I'd purchased. A part of me wanted to get out of bed and study it some more, but I was tired from the drive and Preview Night, and fell asleep before I could act on the impulse. Day 1 I awoke the next morning at 6am sharp to the sound of a shrieking alarm in my ear. I sat up groggily and wiped my face with my hand, then stumbled to the restroom to take care of business. I felt a little more human after a shower, and decided to get the kids up. We were on the road two hours later, and at the convention center by nine. I had certain designated targets that we hit first, and then everyone went their scattered ways. I had some serious book-shopping to do today, and much of my morning was spent pawing through long boxes of comics. By the time I was done, I had spent nearly a hundred dollars of my carefully-hoarded convention money. I decided to take my finds to the car. After loading the boxes into the car, I went back inside to meet up with the kids for lunch. We had some hot dogs and pizza, and then split up again. I had a couple of panels I wanted to attend, so I headed over to listen to various comic book VIP-types tell me the latest trends and happenings. The panels lasted until six, and effectively killed the rest of my day. After I gathered the kids up, we hit a grocery store before going back to the rooms. Our dinner consisted of a feast of sandwiches, chips, and fruit, with cheap soda to drink. After we ate, we watched a comedy on the in-room movie channel. On impulse, I dug out the necklace and looked at it again. The pendant again gave me that warm glow of contentment. I handed it to Michael and said, "What do you feel from this?" He took it a moment and then said, "I don't feel anything, Dad. Except that it's kinda sharp in a couple of places, so be careful when you wear it." He handed it back to me. I passed it over to Olivia, who'd originally found it. "What about you?" I asked her. "I don't feel anything special," she replied after holding it for a minute. "What do you feel?" "I'm not sure," I say. "But there's definitely something..." I shrugged and put it out of my mind. Kate said, "Mark, if you're going to wear the Robin costume tomorrow, you really need to start getting ready." I grimaced. I knew what she meant; to wear the Robin costume, I needed to wear tights. That meant I needed to shave my legs. Not that I had a problem with that, in and of itself; I'd done it many times before. It was just so time-consuming! But I knew she was right. "Yeah," I said as I moved to get up. Without thinking about it, I slipped the necklace on as I did so. That was the last thing I remembered for a bit. I opened my eyes to see Olivia and Kate looking down at me. "What happened?" I asked, realizing as I did so that my voice didn't sound right at all. It was like I'd inhaled some helium. "Um...you tell h-him," Olivia said to Kate. "Gee, thanks," Kate said. "Hm. Well, there's just not an easy way to say this. Mark, you're a girl now." "I'm sorry," I said. "Did you just say I'm a girl now?" As I said it, I thought idly that it would definitely explain the voice. "Yes," she replied. "One hundred percent. Completely. Every. Little. Bit." I knew I should be upset about his, but there was only a feeling of deep contentment and correctness. I sat up, marveling at how easily I did so, and at the shifting of weight on my chest. I looked down at what appeared (to me, anyway) to be two huge mounds of flesh. "Wow," I say. I felt something else thump me on the chest as I sat up. I looked at the necklace hanging in the valley between my new breasts. "It was this..." I said as I looked at it. "It happened when I put it on." "We know," Olivia said. "George and I were looking at you when it happened. The pendant flashed light through all of the crystals, and it spread out to cover your body. That was when you went down. Don't you remember any of that?" "I remember putting the necklace on as I got up," I said. "After that, it's all a blank." "Umm...Dad?" George said around the corner of the door. "Are you all right?" "I think so," I said. It suddenly struck me that I didn't even know what I looked like. I stood up, again marveling again at how light I felt. Everything looked so much bigger, and I wondered just how much height I'd lost. I looked at the mirror, and got my second shock. Kate had been absolutely correct in her statement. I was a girl, not a woman, a teenage girl. I couldn't have been more than 14 or a very young 15. I had long blonde hair and ocean-blue eyes. Looking down at my body, I appeared to be built just about right for my new age. I looked over at Kate and Olivia and realized we were all now physically the same age. "Well," I said, "at least I can borrow clothes to wear." As if for comic effect, my now way-too-large shirt decided at this moment to slide down one shoulder, and one of my new 'girls' popped out into view. I stared at it stupidly for a minute, then the absurdity of the thing hit me and I began laughing. The other two girls joined in, and it took us a good five minutes to calm down. At last, after she got her breath back, Olivia said, "Uncle Mark, you're taking this pretty well." Her remark sobered me up a bit, and I took stock of my emotions. I would have thought I'd be a gibbering wreck of hysteria, but I still felt calm and contented. In fact, a part of me was rejoicing in this whole experience. I was going to get an insight no man I knew had ever had, an insight on what it's like to be a teenage girl! In the back of my mind, I was wondering how long I would be a teenage girl and if there was a time limit at all, but those thoughts were being held back by the calmness. "I guess I am," I said quietly. "Maybe it's the pendant causing this, but all I'm feeling is calm and comfortable." "All right, then," Kate said. "Let's get you out of those oversize clothes and into something that fits and is a little more appropriate to your new age." She and Olivia didn't take long in finding me an outfit, and soon I was wearing a Hot Topic belly T-shirt, a pair of jeans, and a pair of sandals. My outfit was very similar to the way the two of them were dressed. "Ready to face the guys?" Olivia asked. "Gotta do it sooner or later," I replied. "Let's get it over with." She nodded, and opened the door so the boys could come in. "Oh, my," Michael said. George was a little more vocal. "You're a freakin' hottie!" he almost shrieked. Joe was the one I was concerned about. He was a year older than Michael, and something of a player with the ladies. I'd passed on a message from my wife before we left that Olivia was off-limits; maybe now I needed to remind him that I was also off-limits. Michael, my genius, was the first to come up with the real question. "Do you think we should call Mom?" For the first time, I became a little concerned. My wife, Denise, could be very quick to anger. She's second-generation Sicilian, direct from her mother's side. The next thought to occur to me was regarding my job. If this was permanent, how would I do my work? I was an inspector in an electronics assembly factory. While it wasn't the most strenuous of jobs, some lifting was required. More importantly, how would I explain the unexplainable, that suddenly I'd lost at least 25 years, over a foot of height, and at least 150 pounds of weight (not to mention my manhood?) For a moment, my concerns were so strong that they pierced the veil of calmness around me, and I felt tears spring into my eyes. Kate saw this and rounded on Michael (her boyfriend). "Don't you think she has enough to worry about right now?" she asked him. "Sorry," he said. I looked at him and started to do what I would always do, put my hand on his shoulder and squeeze. I stopped when I realized I was reaching up instead of down to do this. "No worries," I said. "We don't know what happened or why. For now, we're going to just go ahead with our plans and attend the convention. I spent too much money on this to let anything screw it up." I looked over at Joe. "Guess you're the driver for the rest of the trip, or until this is reversed." "Oh great," he groaned. "In your van?" "'Fraid so," I said. "Unless you have enough money to buy a car." "You're going to have to navigate, then," he said. "I have no idea how to get to the convention." "Fair enough," I replied. "Well, I guess for tonight, we need to get some sleep. Umm..." I looked over at Olivia and Kate. "Don't worry, we won't let you sleep in here with the wolves," Kate grinned. "Grab your toothbrush; you're one of the girls now." And that's how I ended the first night of the convention. Kate loaned me an extra set of pajamas, saying that we'd have to either buy me some or do laundry soon. I was allowed to use the single bed; Kate and Olivia bunked together. It took me awhile to get to sleep. The new protrusions made it hard to get comfortable; I couldn't sleep in the position I was used to, on my stomach. At last, I found a fairly restful spot lying on my side, and drifted off. Day 2 The next morning found me still female. Kate woke me up and said, "Get up, girl, we have lots to do today." I found out that she and Olivia had decided I was still going to be in a costume. I knew my niece had brought along several costumes, as she was really into the whole dressing-up thing. Kate was going Goth today, with lots of dark makeup. Olivia was going to wear her sprite costume. As for me... "Supergirl?" I asked. It was the animated series version, with the white belly T-shirt with the S-shield and the short shorts. Olivia shrugged. "I had a blonde wig for it, but you won't need that. Besides, it's that or the fairy costume." I looked at the fairy costume, which showed off even more skin than I was comfortable with, and quickly decided that Supergirl it was. I was hustled off to the restroom first, and told to take a razor to my whole body, minus the 'girl parts'. I found that this didn't take long; I was already almost hairless. I was given a scented bottle of body wash to use that left me smelling like tropical fruit. Olivia then came in and had me wrap myself in a towel, then proceeded to wash and condition my hair. She styled it a little bit after she finished, and there I was, Supergirl in the flesh. I was given a pair of panties to put on, then the shorts. They were a bit tighter on me than they would have been on Olivia, but the girls both grinned and said it added to the effect. Olivia then handed me the top, and I found that there was a built-in bra for support. I put the shirt on, following the girls' directions, and found that my front seemed to have grown even more. Olivia assured me that this was just the shirt, and that I was still the same size. "We're lucky," she added as she handed me a pair of flat shoes. "We're apparently the same shoe size, so you can wear these. We were going to have to go shoe shopping otherwise, or you were going in heels..." I quickly slipped the shoes on. Kate said, "Perfect! Now just a little light makeup..." She matched action to words, and soon I was deemed ready for the public. Olivia handed me a small backpack to carry, and had me put my wallet, some change, and a few makeup items in. I was mortified when Kate handed me a couple of feminine sanitary items, but she said, "Trust me, it's better to be prepared." We each had one last look in the mirror, and then Kate got her camera out and set it to timed shots. She took a few of the three of us and of each of us individually. "I can't wait to put these up on MySpace!" she grinned. "Three hot chicks at the comic book convention!" It hit me all of a sudden that I was included in that statement, that I was in fact a 'hot chick'. I also realized that the girls hadn't treated me strangely or done anything to exclude me from their fun, that I was, to them, just one of the gang. I fingered the pendant, still slung around my neck, and again felt calm and collected. The boys were in awe of the three of us. Michael went to Kate and kissed her fairly thoroughly, then remembered that the blonde girl was actually his father. "Umm...sorry," he said, blushing. Kate was grinning from ear to ear. We had a hurried breakfast of cheese, fruit, and orange juice, and then piled into the van to go to the convention. I gave Joe directions, and we arrived without major incident. After digging out my wallet and handing Joe some money for parking, Kate said, "Tonight we're going to have to get you some things, after we're done here." The second day was "Swag Day". Swag, to those unfamiliar with the phrase, is the little freebies that were at many of the booths. Magnets, pins, bookmarks, free comics and samplers, occasionally even a free T-shirt or hat. I immediately noticed the first really great thing about my new look: the swag was much more plentiful. I stuck with either Kate or Olivia the whole day, if not both, and we were all loaded down before lunchtime. It was bad enough we had to go to the car and put stuff away. The second thing I noticed was that my picture was taken more on the second day than ever before. I mean, I'd been in costume before, and I'd had my picture taken before, but not like this. It seemed like I was posing, or I was posing with one of the other girls, every few minutes. I was smart enough to have made a bunch of cards beforehand with my e-mail address on them, and I gave one to every person who took pictures. That way, I'd have lots of them for myself. I was really pleased with one particular picture. It's the one that appeared in Wizard magazine, with a bunch of girls gathered up to be the 'Girls of the DC Universe'. There was a Batgirl, a Batwoman, a Huntress, a Power Girl, a Zatanna, a Supergirl (me), a Black Canary, a Hawkwoman, a Wonder Girl, a Starsgirl, a Madame Xanadu, a Starfire, and of course, a Wonder Woman. Each girl in the picture received a framed copy and a year's subscription to the magazine for participating. I had thought I'd be nervous about showing so much skin, but as the day went on, I forgot how I was dressed. It seemed the pendant was providing me with all the skills I'd need to appear female. I didn't even realize until after I'd entered that I'd went into the ladies' restroom without thinking about it. Everything seemed natural and normal. Olivia and Kate persuaded me to go to one booth in particular. A woman at this booth was doing free henna tattoos. They persuaded me to get a butterfly on the small of my back and a little rose on the top of one of my breasts. Kate got herself several sets of stitches for her costume the next day (a flesh-eating zombie), and Olivia got a couple of Japanese symbols and a heart. We giggled and joked around and just had fun. We also visited the Sony booth, where a karaoke game was set up on a Playstation to demo. The boys joined us there, and we all had fun doing songs. It turned out that I had a great soprano, and had I known a few more of the songs, I might have taken first place in the contest. I gave Michael instructions to hand out cards to everyone who snapped pictures during my songs. By the end of the day, we were all tired, but didn't want it to end. I checked the funds, and we had enough to actually eat out, so I had Joe drive to a smorgasbord I'd noticed, very near Wal-Mart. As we were all teen-agers, the only one who paid full price was Joe. We lied about my age and said I was only twelve, which made it a little cheaper. The young woman at the register was looking for an adult to join us, but of course there was none. We had fun over the course of our meal, but we were courteous enough to do it so that other customers wouldn't be bothered. I found that I wasn't eating anything like I usually would, and got full rather quickly. By the time we were finished, I was a little sleepy. "Oh, no, you don't!" Kala said, putting to rest any hopes of just going back to the room. "We've got shopping to do, little hottie Supergirl. You have no costume for tomorrow." We went into Wal-Mart and looked around, but there really wasn't anything jumping off the shelves. Kate picked a more feminine wallet for me to put in my purse, and we picked up a couple of cosmetic items that were more in keeping with my skin color. We were kicking around costume ideas as we walked through the store. Kate suggested making me an X-costume and going as Shadowcat, but I didn't want to dye my hair brown. For some reason, being blonde felt right. I decided that I wanted to go in the 'classic' Supergirl costume the next day, so we started trying to assemble one. We found some red nylon in the fabric area that would work well as a cape, and some yellow nylon that we could use to make an S-shield. I got lucky and found a regular skirt in the Juniors section that would do for the costume. The real find, however, was the top. We found it, of all places, in the girls' nightwear section. There was only one in a size that would fit me, but I lucked out again as it was on clearance. The bottoms were useless, but the top was perfect. The fit was right, and the color and material was a match to the nylon we'd picked up in fabrics. We went over to the shoes and didn't find anything usable. Olivia had noticed a Payless Shoe Source in the area, so we stopped there after gathering the guys up (they'd been in electronics the whole time). We found the perfect boots there, red patent leather that (on me) were almost knee-high. We took the purchase up to the counter and, without thinking, I pulled out a credit card. The lady looked at it, then at me, then at the card again. "I'm going to have to check this," she said. I suddenly realized my error. The card was in my (adult male) name, not my current one. Thinking quickly, I said, "It's my father's card. He lets me use it all the time." I willed her to believe me, and I guess the honest open look on my face convinced her. "Okay, sweetheart," she smiled. "Aren't those a little bit grown-up for you, though?" I showed her my costume and said, "For this, they're perfect." She thought it was the cutest thing in the world, and ended up knocking the price down twenty-five percent. I didn't complain! We got back to the room a little after 8pm. The boys took their swag to their room and started an inventory; there were certain items that I'd asked them to look for prior to the start of the convention. I was going to do the same, but I was press-ganged into being a sewing dummy for Olivia. I was impressed, as she expertly rolled out the red satin and hemmed the edges. She did it by hand, but it would have been hard to tell. Kate had sketched out an S-shield on a piece of cardboard and cut it out to use as a template, and quickly cut the yellow nylon. Olivia pinned the S-shield onto the cape, and with smooth, even sweeps of the needle, the plain red cape become Supergirl's. Olivia undid the shoulder seams of the pajama top, inserted the tabs she'd made of the red nylon into the openings, and sewed the seams back together. "Suit up, Supergirl," Kate said. I did so, and they held up a mirror. As I looked at myself, I saw Helen Slater as Kara Zor-El, just as she looked in the movie, except for the hair. Kate said, "We're gonna be getting up early tomorrow, Kara, so we can do a little styling on your hair. Tomorrow is the costume contest, and I honestly think you can win it." "It wouldn't break my heart," I said. The grand prize was $10,000.00, second place was $5,000, and third was $2,500. Any of those sums would make this weekend more than worth the trip. "So Kara is my new name?" "It might as well be, you look the part." Olivia was walking around me, checking everything. Finally satisfied, she smiled and said, "I am so good..." Impulsively, I turned around and hugged her. "You sure are," I said happily. I included Kate in the hug as well. "Thanks, both of you, for all your help. I'd be lost without you." "Of course you would!" Kate laughed. "But we girls stick together, y'know? Now, let's go show the guys Supergirl Mark II." As I walked a little in the heels, I found them to be quite comfortable and maneuverable. We went through the pass-through into the other room after knocking, and again the boys' jaws dropped. "Wow," Michael said quietly. "Just...wow." George just stared. Joe had the 'wolf' look in his eyes, and I felt something in my lower belly want to respond to that look. I knew I'd better talk fast or he was going to start something. "Guys...as much as I may look like a cute teen fox, please remember that I'm still an adult male inside. I'm letting things ride for the duration of the convention, because there's no point in doing anything until after it's over anyway. But if this is still me afterward, I'm going to need the support of my sons and friends. So do me a favor and consider me, as long as I'm Kara, to be off-limits." I saw that my speech had the desired effect, as Joe looked at me more normally. "So what's the plan, then?" "We go to the convention tomorrow," I said. "After that, I have to start thinking about how to get back to being Mark. Until then, I'm going to be Kara and have fun, because it well could be my last chance. After this weekend, if I'm still a teenage girl, I'm going to have to go to a doctor. That doctor, IF I can even convince him it's true, is going to want to study me, along with a butt-ton of his colleagues. If I'm lucky, by the time I return to my original age, I might be a free woman." Umm...Un- Kara?" Olivia said. "I have proof that it happened." "You do?" I looked at her. "How?" "Well...something told me I needed to get the change on film, so I got my phone out and set it to video. I missed the first couple of seconds, but believe me, it's easy to see that it's you at the start." She looked at me with a few tears in her eyes. "Are you mad at me?" "Mad?" I say. "Love, I'm ecstatic! Raw video footage that isn't tainted or edited at all? It means that my identity can be salvaged if this is permanent. Olivia, you may have made my life a hundred times easier. No way could I be angry!" I got up and grabbed her hands and danced around a bit, forgetting how much my skirt would move. Kate cleared her throat and I looked at her. She had a smirk on her face. Michael was studiously looking at the bathroom, George was blushing beet red, and Joe wasn't in the room at all. "That was quite a show," Kate said dryly. "We should have filmed that." I started to get mad, then realized she was teasing me. So instead I said, "Bitch." And stuck my tongue out at her. "Tease," she replied, and hit me with a pillow. It went downhill from there. By the end of it, we'd trashed the room (although all swag was safe and accounted for!) We girls guiltily helped the boys remake their beds and stuff, and then crept off to our own room to laugh about the whole thing. Day 3 True to her word, Kate woke us all up early. She allowed me and Olivia time enough to get some juice and fruit, then said, "All right, girly- girls, sit your butts down so Auntie Kate can fix your hair." Olivia was going as the sprite today, and Kate had agreed to do some teasing to her hair. She started with mine first, though, after hustling me through a fast shower. She did some magic with a blow-dryer and a curling iron, and soon I had softly bouncing curls in my hair, making me look even more like Helen Slater in the movie. I slipped my 'uniform' on as Kate worked on Olivia's hair, then quickly zombie-fied herself. She looked rather gruesome. We joined the boys, who were all in costumes today as well. Michael was a Tetris block (my son the uber-geek!), George was a Jedi, and Joe...well, Joe was hard to describe. Olivia finally tagged him as a 'ninja kitty', and we were satisfied. Kate quickly sank her teeth (lightly) into Michael's neck as I snapped a picture, and we got some shots of everyone, ending with a group shot. The drive was quicker today and we were inside sooner. At most conventions, the last day is always the quietest, and this one was no exception. There were more costumes, however. I had still more pictures taken, and actually had to go and use a copier to make more cards. Olivia and Kate were getting a lot of pics as well, and curiously enough, Michael also got a lot of requests. The best thing about the last day was that most of the vendors started discounting their goods. I managed some great deals, probably the best I'd ever done at a convention. It shocked a lot of the vendors that a teenage girl was so knowledgeable about comic books. I didn't get as much time to shop as I'd have liked, though. The costume contest was starting fairly soon, and Olivia, Michael, and I were entered. We tried to get the others to do it, but they swore that Olivia and I were the only ones with a chance at winning. Kate was our cheerleader, in full zombie getup. Some of the other costumes were good, really good. One woman was there as Wonder Woman, and really looked the part. A guy who'd come as Wolverine had made retractable claws. I still think that if they hadn't hung up on him, he'd have won. A few had come in costumes that were obviously not hand-made, and were disqualified. The person in the Alien costume was disgruntled by this, but left without a major fuss. Some of the other costumes were, to be kind, not so great, and were eliminated. Michael was one of those, but Kate hugged him as a consolation prize. At last, it came down to four of us. Wonder Woman, Wolverine, Supergirl, and the sprite. The judges conferred in a huddle. The spokesperson at last said, "You're all great, and we can't decide by your costumes. So we're going to do a round robin of comic book trivia, and whoever is left standing at the end, wins first. We're going to award two third prizes." Olivia danced up and down; to her, $2,500 was a lot of money. Personally, I wanted the big pot, and thought I had a shot at it. Wolverine looked as if he felt the same way. As the contest started, he had reason to. The judges had us draw straws for the question order. Wolverine got the large one, so he went first. Wonder Woman, myself, and then Olivia followed. We were allowed to choose our own categories for the questions. At first, the contest was even as the questions were easy. Olivia and Wonder Woman were fairly quickly eliminated, however, as the difficulty increased. Olivia nearly flew over to pick up her money order, and then joined the rest of the group in cheering me on. Wolverine knew his books; I had to give him that. We eyed each other with respect as the questions got harder and harder. The judges had resorted to a thick folder of questions, and the two of us were tearing it up. At last, he missed a question. I was told that I had to answer to win; otherwise, the contest continued. I'd been holding out on a category for this very reason, and praying that no one else would choose it. "For my category, for my final question, I choose...The Tick," I said. The judges were stumped. It was a legitimate comic book that everyone knew, yet no one knew any difficult trivia for. The book didn't have any questions either. At last, I was asked, "What is the Tick's battle cry?" I answered, " SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!!!" And just like that, I was $10,000 richer. Wolverine at first looked at me like he wanted to use his claws, but then he smiled. "Well played, young lady," he said. "Very well played." He held his hand out to me and I took it lightly. We walked over to get our money orders, and there was my second picture in Wizard magazine, with a short article as well. "We're going out to eat tonight!" I laughed as I put my money order in my purse. Wherever we want!" Even after the taxes that were taken out, I still cleared over $6,000. That was about an eighth of my normal annual salary, and it was free and clear. Well, the rest of the con was rather anticlimactic. It ended early so that the vendors and exhibitors could clean up and go home. I was again loaded down with stuff, but the boys were gentlemen and carried everything for me. I felt absolutely free of cares and troubles at the moment. I knew that I would have to start thinking about the future soon, and that this was likely to be my last bit of freedom for awhile. But for the moment, I didn't care. I almost felt like I could fly. I didn't notice when the others fell back from me as we neared the van. I didn't even see the second car parked next to it. I did notice when my wife got out of the second car, however. "D-Denise?" I stuttered. "What are you doing here?" "I'm here to see you," she said in a rather brittle voice. "What the hell happened to you, Mark?" As I started to answer, she said, "Never mind, I know the story. Why haven't you called me to tell me about this?" I looked at the ground and then said in a small voice, "Was there any point in ruining the convention, Denise? I know that our lives are about to be radically altered, unless this change somehow magically reverses itself - and since I think it was magic to begin with, that isn't so far-fetched," She was about to object, and I continued, "unless you can explain how I'm suddenly a teenage girl with all the working plumbing." She started to say something, but stopped. She stood there for a moment, then said quietly, "What do we do?" "Honestly, I don't know. Olivia has my change recorded on her phone. I think it has to do with - hey, it's gone!" I suddenly realized that the necklace was no longer around my neck. For the first time, true fear hit me. Then, from deep inside, I felt that calm radiate again, and realized that somehow the necklace was a part of me. Denise said, "Mark...I still love you. But if this is permanent, I can't be married to a teenage girl. For one thing, I'm not a lesbian, or bisexual. For another..." She looked me over and grinned a little. You're definitely jailbait!" The grin faded. "But I can't be your wife if this is permanent." I felt my heart break. She was absolutely right, of course, and it appeared there was nothing I could do about it. I still loved her, fiercely. In Kara's body, though, I couldn't do anything about it. I also realized that while I loved her, I didn't feel a physical attraction to her either. "What do you suggest?" I asked her. "I can't exactly move out and live on my own. Even if I prove my identity, the fact is, I'm not an adult anymore, physically or, "I gulped, "mentally. I'm not bisexual or a lesbian either, apparently. But what about the kids? Michael and George saw it, so they understand. Marie and Alex won't understand, especially Alex." Marie and Alex were my two younger children. "I don't know," she said. "I guess, for now, we go home." We went back to the hotel and checked out. On the way, I told her I'd won the first place prize. Denise said, "Good. We'll need it to pay for your new clothes, I guess." The thought hadn't occurred to me until then that I would need to start building a new wardrobe. "By the way," I asked, "how did you find out what was going on?" From the back seat, Kate said, "I called her, Kara." "Kara?" "It's Supergirl's given name," I told her. "Apparently, it's mine too." I turned to look at Kate. "Why did you call her?" I said it in a way that she would know I wasn't angry. For the first time since I'd changed, she looked at me like I was Mark. "I-I thought you might want to be able to talk to her without the babies around," she said almost shyly. "I'm sorry if that was wrong..." I reached out for her hand and held it. "It wasn't wrong," I said. "Thank you." Denise didn't say anything more on the matter until after we'd eaten and got on the road. We stopped at a rest area just outside of Kankakee and she asked us all to come with her for a walk. It was still daylight, altho the sun was setting, and we went to a picnic table and sat down. "I've been thinking about what we can do," she said without preamble. "So far, I've come up with three options. One, I file for an immediate divorce and leave you to fend for yourself. That's not the option I plan to take." I felt my eyes brimming with tears, and she reached over and held my hand. "From what I've seen and heard, this isn't your fault, and it would be wrong for me to do that." "What are the other options, Mom?" Michael asked. He was listening intently, and I was glad that he was. He had a very keen analytical mind and used it well at times. "The second option still involves a divorce. I'm sorry, M-Kara, but we just can't stay married. Let me explain myself before you get upset." She took a deep breath. "The first thing is to see if we can actually establish your identity. I don't know if it will be possible. I know a few people who know a few people with some clout; if it happens, then we'll go from there. You'd still live with me, of course; you're right in that you're too young to live alone. Even if we establish your identity, you need to learn how to survive as a woman." She smiled. "Since I can't afford a finishing school that means you get to return to junior high and high school." "The third option is the worst. I'll have to declare you missing. You'd come to live with us as my niece Kara. We'd have to wait seven years and then have you declared legally dead. I hope that isn't the case. I'm not sure we could make it on my salary, feeding five mouths." Denise was a paralegal at one of the best law firms in the city, but she was right. I could hear the fear in her voice. "Hey," I said, "even if I'm stuck this way, I have ways of making money. We'll survive no matter what." I grinned. "If nothing else, I'll try out for teen Jeopardy or something." "Umm..." Olivia said, "You could always try modeling." Denise blinked, then looked hard at me. "Hm. Y'know, that's not a horrible idea. Whatever did this to you at least was kind enough to slap you with the beauty stick several times. I never thought I'd be telling you this, Mark, but you're gorgeous." While that word wasn't one I ever thought my wife would apply to me either, I felt good when she said it. I was realizing just how much I liked my new body. It felt right to me, and although I didn't know how much of that was my own feelings, as opposed to the pendant that I knew was inside of me, I really didn't care. "I'll do whatever I can to help," I said. "And if nothing else, there's always eBay." I was referring to an ongoing discussion between Denise and me regarding setting up an online comic book shop. I was becoming discontented with the job I was working, and I thought I had the ability to make a go of it on my own. Denise was concerned about our finances at the start. "I've got the startup capital now," I added, "if we use the prize money for it." "And what will you wear in the meantime?" she asked. "Hey, I shopped the thrift stores as a man, why not as a girl?" I looked back at the girls. "And I'm sure I have fashion advisors to help me." They both nodded. She sighed. "Can we finish this discussion at home, please? I have enough to process at the moment." "Mom?" Michael said. "I'll be here to help too, you know. I'm already planning to get a job as soon as possible." "No," I said firmly. "You may be getting a job, but I don't want it to be something that you have to leave school for. This isn't your problem, Michael. I appreciate the offer, and I'm more proud than you'll know that you made it, but no." We all took advantage of the stop to stretch our legs and use the facilities. I had the kids gather into a group and got a last few pictures of us all together. Denise snapped several of everyone, then a few of each of us. We then returned to the cars and got back on the road. We arrived at home a few hours later, shortly after ten. Denise had already made arrangements with Joe's father and Kate's parents that they could stay the night. We unloaded the car as quietly as possible and went inside. Joe's aunt was asleep on the couch; she'd been kind enough to watch the younger children. Without anything being said, I went with Olivia and Kate to the spare bedroom. There was a bunk bed there, with a single top bunk and a wider bottom, big enough for two. I took the top. I lay in the darkness, the agony of losing my wife being muted by the pendant still radiating calm and comfort inside me. I thought about the plans we'd made together. I remembered how I'd felt the last two days. With these two warring concepts in my head, I slept rather fitfully. The Morning After I awoke just after dawn the next morning, not feeling particularly rested. I slipped down from the bunk without waking the other girls and went to my bedroom. I eased the door open quietly and saw Denise lying there. I could tell from her posture that she wasn't sleeping very well either. I started to turn away and she said, "No, please, come in, Kara." "I didn't mean to wake you," I said as I got into bed. I lay down on my side and looked at her. She reached over and moved a lock of blonde hair off my cheek. "You are a very beautiful girl," she said. "If this is permanent, you're going to grow up to be a heartbreaker." I saw a tear course its way down her cheek. "I truly didn't mean for this to happen," I said quietly. "Denise, I love you, and I would never have you hurt like this. I'm so sorry." I reached out to take her hand and she let me, our fingers curling together as they always had - except that now she had the larger fingers. "I know," she said. "It's the only thing keeping me sane, is that I know you didn't do this deliberately." She smiled. "Marie will be ecstatic. She finally has a sister." We lay there awhile, not saying anything, and gradually we both drifted back into sleep. When I awoke the second time, she was out of bed. I looked at my alarm clock and saw that it was nearly 10am. I found a change of clothing laid out for me on my dresser, with a note: "You can keep these things, Kara. They don't fit me anymore. We'll raid my closet later to see if there's anything else I can give you. Kate." I looked at the clothing: plain white panties, a bra, a pair of jeans, and a blue T-shirt with the word "Spoiled" written on it. I went into my bathroom and showered, careful not to get my hair wet, and got dressed. I went out to find that Joe had gone home with his aunt, Kate had gone home and returned with clothing for me, and that my daughter and youngest son were waiting for me to wake up. Marie saw me first. She squealed and ran to me, saying, "Daddy, you look so CUTE!" My son Alex was behind her, and I was gratified that he didn't hesitate to reach for a hug. I found that it was much harder to pick him up, but I managed it through sheer will and held him tight. "Daddy, why are you a girl now?" Marie asked. "I don't know, sweetheart," I told her. "It just happened while I was gone." "Are you going to stay a girl?" "I don't know, sweetheart, I really don't know." Inside me, I felt the pendant pulse. "I don't think I have a say in the matter." "Oh." She seemed to ponder that a moment, then said, "It's OK if you're a girl. I love you anyway." I smiled. "That's good. I love you too." "Can we play later?" she asked. "You can play with one of my dolls." "We'll see what happens," I said. "There are some things I have to do today. Maybe later?" "Okay!" she said. I set Alex down and the two of them ran off to play outside in the backyard. "Well," I heard Denise say from behind me, "that apparently went well." "Yeah," I replied. "I think you're right. Marie thinks she has a new sister." Denise looked me over critically. "That shirt's just a tad tight," she said. I heard the mother voice she used on Marie. "We'll definitely need to do some shopping today." She led me into the living room, where my older boys, Olivia, and Kate were sitting, engrossed in a movie. "Hey, D- Kara," Michael said. George had a mouthful of potato chips, but nodded. Olivia and Kate both looked at me in the same way Denise had. "T-shirt's too tight," Olivia said. I rolled my eyes. "So what is the plan, then?" I asked the room. "Well, I've made an appointment with an attorney," Denise said. "He sounded a little hesitant on the phone, but he said he's willing to listen. We also need to get you some clothing today. We're going to need to use some of your prize money for that, I think." She sighed. "Money's gonna be tight around here." "I'm going to be going through my collection again," I said. "Maybe I can scare some cash up that way." She didn't say anything as I went to pour myself a bowl of cereal. "Kara...do you really think you're going to eat that much cereal?" she asked me as I pulled out my normal bowl and began to fill it. "Umm...no, I guess not," I said as I stopped with far less cereal than I would normally have eaten. "You're going to have to get used to eating a lot less, dear," Denise said. "You're a teenage girl, and if I'm right, you're a teenage girl just starting her puberty." She sighed. "I thought I had a couple of years to deal with this..." Afterwards My life became a circus for awhile after that. We visited the lawyer Denise had contacted, a Brian Olverado. He was skeptical at first, but when he saw the footage from Olivia's phone, he became a believer. He contacted an expert who took the footage and looked it over very carefully for signs of tampering or editing in any way. He sent back his opinion that the footage was raw, hadn't been tampered with, and was completely genuine. When we went to court, Olivia's footage proved to be even more invaluable. A dozen different experts looked at it to try to prove it false, but none of them were able to do it. At last, with thirteen notarized statements in front of him, the judge ruled in my favor, and my identity was judged valid. My records were all changed to reflect my new gender, and thankfully to me, my driver's license was changed and considered valid. Of course, the trial was only the beginning of my troubles. My change was all over the news. I received requests from hundreds of doctors and even more from practicing Wiccans and pagans, all wanting to study both me and the amulet. The Wiccans and pagans all seemed disappointed when I told them that the amulet was gone; I read with amusement the article that the convention center's trash had been savaged by searchers. The doctors, meanwhile, were all told that I was under a physician's care already and wasn't interested in additional services. The general public wasn't much better. I received hundreds of letters comprising both love letters and hate mail. I was told that I was an unnatural freak, a goddess sent from above, and the mortal incarnation of Satan, all in the space of three letters. I received wedding proposals and death threats on almost a daily basis. After awhile, I just stopped looking at the mail. Of course, after awhile, when I didn't do anything outlandish or exciting, I stopped being a story anyway. Denise enrolled me in junior high; Michael and George found it hilarious that I was actually behind them in school. Of course, the school knew my situation, but was willing to let me attend as long as I wasn't a disturbance. For my part, I embraced the chance. I was a model student and didn't cause any particular troubles for the junior high; by the time I was ready to start high school, the story had basically blown over and I was just another attendee. I was a freshman when Michael and Olivia were seniors and George and Kate were juniors, so I was protected from a lot of the goofy games that upperclassmen play on the new kids. At home, I was still Daddy to Marie and Alex, but I became more of a little sister to Michael and George, although they both knew that I could and would discipline as necessary. Denise backed me up without hesitation in these matters as always. I went through the trials and tribulations every teenage girl endures, including my first 'monthly visitor' and all that entailed. I didn't panic as badly as I thought I would when it happened, which I attribute to the influence of the necklace inside me. As such, a couple of years later when Marie had her first period, I was able to help her through it alongside her mother. As to my marriage: we ended up getting a divorce, as necessitated by law. It was a totally unique situation, but in the end, Denise and I worked it out the way we wanted it to be. There was concern that, as my mind and body became more in tune, I might become more reckless and imprudent with my dealings, and a trust fund was suggested. Denise didn't like the idea at first, but I could see the wisdom in it. I put a quarter of my winnings from the convention in to start the fund, and the money was substantial by the time I turned eighteen and could collect it. Our relationship slowly changed. While I was still a parent to the kids, in some ways Denise became more of a mother to me. Not in a disciplinary sense; I didn't get into any trouble. She became my mentor and teacher in the art of becoming a woman and helping me through my second adolescence. Our love changed during this time, and by the time I left for college, she was my mother in all but name. About my junior year, Denise met a man named Tim Harlanson. He was one of the junior lawyers at the firm she worked at. At first, their friendship was fairly professional, but things progressed to the point that it became romantic. She was extremely torn over this, and came to me in tears. I'd known the day would come when one of us would fall for someone else, and told her that as her former husband, she totally had my blessing and support. Then I grinned and said that as her adopted daughter, I was reserving judgment! She giggled through her tears and we hugged tight for a moment. A week later, Tim came over to have dinner with us all. Michael and Kate came home for this event without Denise knowing, and the look on her face was comical. We, that being myself, Marie, George, Kate, and Michael, used Alex to get information and reactions out of the man all night long; he passed the test. After he'd left for the evening, Denise came into the kitchen to find all of us awaiting her. She quoted the old Monty Python line about the 'Spanish Inquisition', and we all laughed. Denise and Tim became a couple with the family's blessing, and the summer before Marie started her senior year, they were married. I was the maid of honor, Marie was a bridesmaid, and Alex, Michael and George were ushers. I could feel the tears inside as the ceremony went on, but as always, the pendant was there, calming me. Tim moved in with us after the honeymoon. As I got to know him better, I was happy for Denise. To this day, they're one of the happiest, most stable couples I know. One of the things I really appreciated about Tim was the way he handled the kids. He, of course, knew my whole story, and understood that I was still the dad. He never pressed that issue, and made sure that they understood that he was a neutral party in decisions regarding them. Meanwhile, my own life was rather hectic. My job at the factory was, of course, over. I was given a medical pension and quietly retired. The pension money went into the family till and was used to pay the everyday expenses until Tim entered the picture; at that point, he insisted that my pension was mine. To this day, that pension goes into my ever- building trust fund. I used a small amount of the winnings to start my eBay comic shop. I had fun and worked hard at it. It was profitable for awhile, but given my school schedule and my blossoming modeling career, something had to give. Yes, I said my modeling career. The one point that my fame did become useful was when I was asked to be the spokesperson for a couple of different clothing stores. Both were local, but I started to build a portfolio of work, and that, along with my story, brought me some regional exposure, and then, a few years later, onto the national scene. Michael, Joe, and Olivia graduated at the end of my freshman year; George and Kate a year later. Michael and Kate were still together, and were attending college together at the University of Illinois; three years later they married. I was one of Kate's bridesmaids; she teased me endlessly about it, but it was all in fun. They have three little ones of their own, two boys and a girl. Michael put the bachelor's degree that he earned in journalism to good use, spending some time with the Chicago Tribune. He then started his own syndicated column, which he's still writing. I have three books that he's written proudly displayed on my bookcase for everyone to see. Joe left the state to attend school on the East Coast; he drifted out of all our lives shortly after that. Joe's father told Denise that his son is doing well in Florida, running a fleet of tourist fishing boats. He's married with a couple of boys who help with the business. Shortly before his death, Joe's father moved to Florida himself to stay with Joe and his family. Olivia joined the Army and George the Marines, literally within days of each other. Olivia became a member of Army Intelligence and worked in Washington DC for a six-year hitch. She then found a new career in the civilian world, doing much the same work for the government. She met a young woman with whom she fell in love with, but it ended a few years later when her love fell ill with ovarian cancer and passed on. Olivia's still recovering from that loss. George ended up making the Marines a career and did his full twenty years of service. He did tours in Afghanistan, Iraq, and North Korea; it was in North Korea that he gave us all the biggest scare of our lives. He went missing for a period of three weeks and was believed either captured or killed with the rest of his unit. As it turned out, he was away from the camp where his unit was taken when the attack happened; he was able to go in and save four other men. The Marines gave him a chestful of medals and a State-side billet for his actions, and he returned home a war hero. He was assigned to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego as an instructor. This is where he met Jana, his future wife and the mother of my oldest two granddaughters. He retired from active duty, still lives in San Diego, and owns and operates his own security service. Marie wanted to follow in my footsteps as a model, but then fell in love with a young man in her sophomore year and decided she wanted to be with him more than in front of a lens. She dated this boy for awhile, then found him with another girl and split up. She threw herself into her books with an intensity I couldn't believe and ended up being the class valedictorian. She went on to major in psychology and got her Ph.D.; she also met the man who would be my son-in-law at college. She's in California now, with a very successful practice and two wonderful little girls of her own. She and George live less than an hour away from each other, and their families visit often. My youngest grew up to be a bit of a problem child. He fell in with a less-than-stellar crowd in high school and had some issues with drugs. Fortunately, we (Denise, Tim, and I) were able to get him straight before these problems became serious, and by his senior year, he was doing well enough to graduate with his class. He went on to join the Navy, get a bachelor's degree in computer science, and now works for Microsoft in the Xbox division. He's also an avid comic book collector, to my eternal pride. He's dating a young woman who works at the nearby Boeing factory. And me? Well, I decided to go to college again and this time pay attention. I ended up with my Master's degree in electronics and a bachelor's in photography. I don't get to use the electronics degree much, but as a model, my photography kills became very important. I now own and run my own agency; occasionally I go in front of the lens myself. I dated a little in high school, but the people at home knew my story, so it was rather casual. At college, I was just another incoming freshman girl, although a bit famous. I pledged a sorority, was accepted, and had a great time. A few of the other girls knew about me, but no one was critical or judgmental about it. I was just one of the girls. I met a man named Greg St. James in my junior year. He was a biology major, but was taking the photography class for a liberal arts credit. We started studying together, and soon became serious. This was my first real relationship since Denise, and I took it very slowly. I did make sure he knew my past before we got serious; he took it in stride and wasn't concerned. Greg and I dated for my entire junior year. We became intimate sexually about six months into the relationship. Afterward, I called Denise and we talked into the wee hours of the night. At the end of the call, we both were crying, but they were good tears. Greg ended up switching his major to photography and crammed hard to graduate with me. He also was putting money away, and, in six months before we were to graduate, proposed to me. The ring was (and is) absolutely gorgeous. I accepted, and we set a wedding date for the next spring. I called the family, and there was general rejoicing. Everyone was going to be there, even George, who was taking leave for the event. Well, in the six months that we were finishing college was when George disappeared. We weren't sure that he was going to be at the wedding, but thankfully, he turned up and was debriefed and decorated with literally two days to spare. My heart was bursting with pride to see my son there, in his dress uniform with all those medals, and I'm not a bit ashamed to say I wept like a baby over him. Denise and I never let him out of sight of one or the other of us until after the wedding. My birth parents had been dead for some time when my second wedding took place. My father hadn't even been to the first one, having died in an auto accident some years before. My mother succumbed to Alzheimer's disease shortly after I became Kara; she never actually knew what had happened to me. I was an only child, and there weren't a lot of family ties on my parents' side. Therefore, it was Tim whom I asked to give me away at the wedding. He'd been a good friend and while not a father in the disciplinary sense, he'd always been there for me to talk to, and was also my attorney professionally. There was a certain symbolism to the act as well; as I gave Denise to him, now he would give me to someone else. My wedding was a media event for many reasons. For the first time since I was revealed, I was a story; the marriage was in papers worldwide. We ended up having to have a security group for the event, as there were protesters and angry people outside the church. Fortunately, they seemed to be content with just spewing vitriol verbally, and there weren't any incidents. Tim became my personal photographer, and we began our rise in the modeling scene. After awhile, we were able to open our own agency, and make it successful. As I said earlier, I still model occasionally. Nowadays, though, I'm more into passing on what I've learned to younger and newer talents. There's one last tale to tell in my story. I became pregnant about five years into our marriage, when we'd become successful enough that I felt I could take the time off and be with a child. My pregnancy went perfectly, and we were the proud parents of a bouncing baby girl, whom we named Marsha Denise St. James. Marsha was born in the late morning. By nightfall, I was allowed some private time with my daughter, just the two of us. I lay there, holding my little miracle, thinking about how being a mother is different than being a father. As much as I loved my four kids with Denise, nothing could compare to what I felt for my baby girl. I felt a sudden weight on my chest, and looked down. The necklace was sitting on my chest, just as it had been the day I bought it. It looked exactly the same. I reached into myself to see if I could still feel it, and while the presence was gone, I could still feel the calm that it had always given me. I removed the necklace fearfully, wondering if, when it wasn't on me any longer, everything would revert back to being in the hotel in Chicago. For one awful instant, I thought I saw the room forming around me. Then I realized I was being silly, and carefully placed the necklace in my purse in the closet. When I left the hospital, I put it in a box. Someday, I suppose, I have to decide what to do with it, and how to share the gifts it gave to me. Somehow, though, I have the feeling that it isn't time for me to let go of it, and that it will tell me when the time comes. For now, I keep it as a cherished heirloom. I still look at it from time to time, to remind me of the wonderful life it's given me. End...? Notes; the story is semi-autobiographical. I attend a comic convention every year with family and friends, all of the teenage persuasion. All of the main characters in the story are modelled off of these teens, excepting the wife and second husband. Alas, the necklace is NOT autobiographical, cuz if it was, you wouldn't be reading about it here! (.|_|.)