"No Marlene, I won't do it." the dark haired woman said to the pretty blonde sitting across from her. She was wearing a black sleeveless shirt and jeans.
"Come on Lori, why not? If he's cheating on you this is your chance to catch him!" Marlene said with a glint in her eyes. "After all men are pigs and this is not the worst thing you could do to him!"
Lori played with her straw, stirring her iced tea looking a little down. She flipped her long black hair back out of her eyes. Marlene rolled her blue eyes to the sky. Just then the Waitress came and set down their Ice cream. Marlene dug into her Rocky Road Brownie sundae. Lori just played with her Bananna Split.
"Do you need anything else?" the waitress asked. They both said no thanks and returned to their conversation when she was far enough out of ear shot. Marlene watched her all the way as she walked to the back.
"Cute!" was all Marlene said as she went back to her sundae.
"Isn't she a little too young for you, Marlene?" Lori asked in her southern accent trying to get Marlene's attention.
"Naw, what's a few hundred years between people?" Marlene said in her accent which was a peculiar mix of spanish and scottish. "Now where were we? Ah yes we were on the pendejo who calls himself your husband."
"I'm not going to do it Marlene, no matter what, I... I love him!" she said and went back to playing with her bannana split.
"How? Lass ye don't know what you're talkin about!" she said angry. "If he were my husband I'd turn the cabrone into the goat he is! Look if he's not cheating on you then there's nothing to be concerned about. I just want you to be happy!" Marlene said sitting down. She noticed that everyone in the place was staring at them.
Now it was Lori's turn to be angry. "Just because you don't like men doesn't mean they're all bad. Just because you can't have me, don't take it out on him!" she spat.
Marlene just looked at her dumbfounded. Lori felt guilty. "I... I didn't mean that, I'm sorry. Look I love him, and I love you, like a sister or a mother. You sponsored my membership in the coven and you've looked out for me. I'll never forget you." Lori said then guiltily went postal on the bannana split.
Marlene chewed on that a while then spoke. "I'm sorry lass, I know he means a lot to you and I shouldn't be pushing you." she said. Feelings were hurt on both sides and neither had a right to be angry for the wrong reasons.
Lori looked up and said,"All right, I'll do it. There is an antidote isn't there?"
Marlene was happy, even if Lori was doing it because she felt guilty. "Yes there is, after all we're witches! We can do anything!" They laughed and went back to scarfing their ice cream. Just then the waitress screamed, and a tray and bowls hit the floor.
"Bitch!" a guy shouted. The waitress tried to run but he grabbed her by the arm and held her. The manager came out and confronted the man. "What seems to be the problem sir?" she asked.
"This bitch just spilled Ice Cream all over me!" He said snarling.
"HE Grabbed my ass!" she said ready to kill him.
"Sir I'm going to have to ask you to leave!" the manager said.
He pulled back and punched the manager. He was a big guy with blonde hair wearing a black leather jacket and pants with no shirt underneath. The two women stood no chance against him. A guy from the next table got up and tried to stop him, but the 90 pound geek didn't stand a chance and was soon lying next to the manager on the floor. He was laughing and he brought the woman close and kissed her on the mouth. He thought he was invincible.
Marlene jumped on the table and landed a wicked kick in his not so ugly kisser. His sun-glasses shattered and dropped to the floor. He rolled with it so it didn't do much damage. He shook his head and lunged for the tall blonde woman who just embarrased him. She flipped over him and he ended up with a face full of ice cream.
"Stay still bitch!" the man screamed and lashed out at her with a back kick that caught her in the stomach. She went down and the man pressed hi advantage. He started kicking her on the ground.
"When I get up, and I will, you are going to wish life had passed you by!" "How do you like that bitch!" the man raged and kept kicking her. A lightning bolt flew from out of nowhere and struck the man. Fortunately just a second later a frying pan struck him from behind. He went down like a sack of wet sand. He was only stunned, incredibly. He looked up to see the waitress holding a cast iron pan.
Marlene looked over at Lori who gave her an innocent smile. Marlene gave her a wink then turned back to the man on the floor. "Now the shoe's on the other foot jerk weed!" she said and began to kick his ass seven ways from sunday.
He was handily defenestrated and lay in a pool of glass on the mall walkway. Several security guards were already on their way. The man was bruised and bleeding but he got up and ran.
As he ran he felt something strange. He seemed to be working harder but he was getting nowhere. His legs seemed shorter and he seemed weaker. Then he felt his chest explode outward and the strange weight almost knocked him over. He felt the hair on his back before he saw a lock of long blonde hair flop down in front of his face. His groin exploded as he hit the floor. The security guards were closing in and he scrambled into an open vent. The cops passed him by. Then he felt something else strange. His clothes changed around him into a french maid's uniform. He closed his eyes then he felt himself moving. He opened his eyes to find himself sitting on a bed in a richly furnished room.
Meanwhile back at the mall, they were cleaning up the ice cream shop. The security guards were taking statements and bandaging the wounds of the manager and the geek. Amazingly Marlene's wounds seemed slight almost as if they had healed instantly.
Marlene pulled out a wad of cash and went to the waitress,"Here this should cover the damage."
The waitress pushed the cash back to Marlene and said,"No, You saved my life, if it were up to me I'd give you money!" Then the manager came up and grabbed the cash greedily,"I'll take that!" Marlene whispered a curse under her breath and turned back to the waitress. Marlene introduced herself to the waitress and began making small talk. Lori shook her head and slurped down the rest of her bannana split then attacked Marlene's sundae.
The cops were talking to Marlene and the waitress now. Lori overheard them say the guy got away. Something told her that he had help, but that he wouldn't be where he wanted to be. Lori looked at her watch and then rose from the booth. She straightened her floral print one piece dress. She had pulled up her dress finally figuring out that marlene had been staring at her cleavage all afternoon. Then she headed for the door. Marlene saw her and made a beeline to intercept her.
"Where are you going?" Marlene asked wryly.
"I'm going to my aerobics class. You really ought to join me!" Lori said coldly. "Go back to your latest love. I wanna see the expression on her face when you tell her you're 500 years old."
Ouch, Marlene thought,"Why don't you just use magic to keep things in line?"
"Some things just aren't worth it if they are so easily changed." Lori replied.
"Well we're meeting friday. It's the full moon and the rite starts at midnight. The preparations begin at 7:00. Get the samples and we can begin the spell."
"By the way," Lori asked,"what happened to mister masher?"
Marlene smiled wickedly,"Let's just say he's going to know what it's like to have to wait on people. First he'll be a french maid, then a sled dog, a team horse etc. etc.!"
"Forget I asked, how long do you plan on puttin him through the wringer?"
"At least a few years." Marlene said.
Lori just whistled and thought how cruel Marlene could be. "I'll see you day after Marl, be good and, umm, don't break any hearts." she said then winked.
"Witch!" Marlene shot back.
"You know it!"
Marlene smiled and went back to hitting on the waitress.
Then he heard the shower stop and lay in bed watching the door. It opened and Jake stepped out of the bathroom. With a wry smile he walked towards the bed. He crawled towards Harry and kissed him on the lips. Harry sat back and let Jake have his way. Jake had proof that Harry was embezzling and he would use that at the slightest hint of a betrayal. He didn't find it unpleasant, he had experimented in college with his gay friend, but he thought he had outgrown it when he married Lori.
He remembered that fateful day he was first pulled into this mess. He was called into Jake's office for something. He was nervous and figured he had been caught. It turned out that Jake was also dipping into the till and he had called Harry in to bribe him to look the other way. Something made him let his tongue slip and Jake Louis turned the tables. He made it look like Harry was taking all the money. If for some reason he didn't do everything Jake said, he would be thrown in prison. At first Harry resisted, he told Jake to get stuffed.
"The way I see it, you can either have sex with me, willingly, or become someone's bitch forcefully in prison. Now which will it be?" Jake said slyly.
Harry hated how smug the bastard was. But he had to keep him satisfied until he could get everything he needed to change the evidence back and nail Jake.
He was wondering what his wife was doing tonight. He didn't have to worry, he told her he would be working late. She said not to worry, she was going to be busy all night with her Sorority activities. He wondered what she did with her sisters all the time.
Just then Jake asked for a blow job. His own raging member begging for attention he did as asked and fell to his knees before Jake.
The blood was even easier. He liked her to shave him. She made him very relaxed and bled him a little without him being any the wiser.
She wondered if Harry had really been having an affair on her. He never came home smelling of perfume or with lipstick or makeup on him. In fact the only thing different about him was that he changed to a new brand of cologne. That was the only clue that she had that anything was amiss. That and the fact he had been having to work late a lot lately. Nothing seemed right but then nothing seemed wrong. She continued to chant and every once in a while she looked up at Marlene who winked at her signifying she though Lori was doing the right thing.
They continued to chant and meditate well into the night. She was glad this was one potion she didn't have to drink. The sun went down and the moon rose above the clearing bathing it in an eerie glow. The fire was burning a dim orange adding a comforting glow to the moonlight. The priestess stepped forward disrobed and cast a powder into the fire. She said something intelligible then stepped to the side as the fire flared up then returned to normal. One by one the other twelve women mimicked the ritual. Lori was the youngest therefore she went last. Then she took her place in the circle. The fire seemed to die down then turned a dark blue. It gave light yet at the same time did not drown out the moonlight.
The circle closed and the women held hands just as the moon came to a rest directly above the clearing. The moonlight seemed to come alive and the women seemed to draw sustenance from it. They began chanting a prayer.
Jake was not a complete asshole, he liked a lot of the same stuff that Harry did and he knew how to push all of Harry's buttons. He even got him tickets to all the hottest games in town. Jake claimed to love him, and said he knew the only way he could have him, was this way. But he wondered, why him.
Despite his being nice about it, Harry didn't like being forced into it. He also didn't like what this was doing to Lori. He still loved her. Despite the strange circumstances, he knew what this would do to Lori. She would probably never believe the strange story, especially how she revealed his experimenting to her. He was writhing under Jakes thumb but he was going to break free and bite him, hard.
Jake began to stir and called out to Harry. Harry returned to the bed where Jake began kissing him.
By the light of the moon
By the light of the fire
Grant me this boon
Spirits grant my desire.
If the man devote to me
Shall unfaithful be,
if his seed he spills
and another it fills
then forms shall he change
by their souls rearrange.
She spoke the words and smiled a bit as she looked at Marlene. Marlene nodded her approval. Other rituals and ceremonies were then performed as necessary for the full moon and to properly complete the circle.
Finally something happened. Harry's eyes grew wide with horror as all of Jake's hair receded into his body. The red hair on his head grew longer and his eyebrows thinned out. His nose became more feminine, and his cheekbones repositioned themselves higher. His lips swelled and became a different shade of red. His shoulders became less broad and he lost muscle mass all over his body. His chest began to swell and blossomed into full breasts with big erect nipples. His stomach flattened but stayed well toned and defined. His hips swelled outward as he writhed in a combination of ecstasy and pain. His pubic hair had already assumed a small triangular shape and his penus shrank into his crotch as his vagina formed itself. His abdomen pushed itself out a little then settled back as his, now her, uterus formed. Her legs were less muscular but still well toned and they took on a more feminine curve. Her ass swelled out and took on a nice curved shape. Her calves smoothed out and her feet shrank and became petite and well manicured.
Finally all of her bones crackled and snapped into their feminine configuration and she screamed almost as if having an orgasm. Then she lay silent and beautiful, panting in the afterglow of her change. Jake had been a handsome man, but he made gorgeous woman, Harry thought to himself.
Then Harry felt the changes. His body began to make changes exactly like the ones that just over took Jake. She screamed in an orgasm then fell to the floor trying to catch her breath. Just when she thought it was over, she found the roller coaster was just coming up over another hill.
She felt herself wrenched free of her body and felt the weird sensation of nothingness. She seemed to be floating above the floor but there was no sensation. No heat, no cold no nothing. Just a feeling of not being.
Then she felt the sensation of movement as she 'floated' near the beautiful woman lying in the bed. Her spirit attached itself to the body and crashed headlong into it. Both bodies gasped hard for air at the same time and sat up looking around trying to figure out what was going on.
"Harry?" a squeaky voiced brunette called out confused.
Harry looked across the bed to see a woman staring at her. She was also fondling her own small but pert breasts.
"Jake?" the red head called out in a sexy low voice.
They both looked at themselves then down at their bodies. They both screamed and passed out at the same time.
The women closed the circle and finished the ceremonies then immediately disbanded and headed for wherever. Nobody spoke and no one broke the silent graceful departure. This was not the time for socializing, other times and places were designated for that. Two women made sure the fire was out and that all symbols were safely erased. When they were finished only the fire ring would be left to show they had ever been there.
Marlene gave Lori a ride home and the whole way they said nothing to each other.
When they arrived at their home, it was two in the morning and Lori expected Harry to be upstairs sleeping. She thought she would go up and check on him later.
It was a regular suburban home. The new age influence was not subtle though. It was obvious she was a student of Feng Shui and the entire house was a well designed patchwork of color and materials. She had incense burners and various mystic symbols here and there. Mixed with Harry's good taste in neo-classical art, it looked very homey in a high income kind of way.
She dropped her purse and tiredly scraped into the kitchen to put on some coffee. Marlene lit up one of Harry's cigars. She kicked back and picked up a cosmopolitan.
Lori came out of the kitchen with two cups. "The coffee will be ready in a minute..." she stopped suddenly in her tracks. She put the cups down on the table and stood indignantly in front of Marlene.
Marlene sensed that something was wrong and she lowered the magazine to come face to face with the fury of Lori. She folded the magazine neatly and placed it cover down on the table in front of her. She gave her best innocent smile then waved childishly at Lori.
"Honestly, you're worse than most men. I have a Victoria's Secret catalog around here somewhere would you like to read that?" Lori chastised.
"You know the good thing about those? If you're a lesbian you can get an eyeful and shop at the same time!" Marlene meant it as a joke but Lori did not think it was funny.
Harry almost screamed. She just managed to get her hand to her mouth in time to stifle it. She almost screamed again when she noticed how manicured and long the nails were and that they were an almost transluscent white.
Jake awoke with a start, "What is it Harry?" she said in a panic. "My voice, what the..." she stammered not believing what she heard. She looked down and saw to small breasts protruding from her chest. "Is this some kind of Joke Harry?" Jake said incredulously. Then she saw Harry and gasped. "You're not Harry, You look like my sister. What's goin on?" He demanded.
"Whatcha thinking?" Marlene said childishly. Almost as if she knew something.
"I was just wondering why Harry was sleeping like the dead tonight." she said suspiciously.
"Something tells me that Harry's gonna wish he was dead before the night is through." She said almost laughing.
"What? What do you know that you're not telling me?"
They looked at themselves in the mirror. Jake had become a rather petite dark haired woman. She wasn't a model and she looked like a feminine version of Harry. Jake just broke down sobbing. She held her manicured hand to her chest and felt her her small almost teenage like breasts. She could almost pass for a man. Harry had never been a big or handsome man and he could have almost passed for a woman.
Harry could not believe the gorgeous woman she was staring at in the mirror. To call her a bombshell would be an understatement. She felt her body and saw the image in the mirror obey her commands. She still could not make the connection in her head. It was as if she were watching a movie. She did see a lot of Jake's sister in the mirror.
Harry turned to Jake and said,"We've got to get out of here, see a doctor or something."
Jake just cotninued to sob and cry. Harry went over to the sobbing woman and grabbed her. She shook her and slapped her saying,"Snap out of it!"
Finally Jake came to her senses and she wiped the tears out of her eyes. "What'll we do?" she said. Her voice was a high soprano and sounded very angelic. Lori had always loved Harry's voice, she said it was almost as if Harry should have had a career in music. But he had always gone back to finance. His Brother wanted to be a country singer and he was still living in an efficiency apartment eating beans and waiting for his big break. Harry did not want to be a starving artist, working bullshit jobs and smoky honky tonks trying to be discovered. He loved his brother but they were always at odds.
She thought long and hard about what to do. "Maybe if we go home, we can figure out what to do from there."
"What homes?" Jake cried desperately. "If we go anywhere, who'll believe we are who we are?"
"Well we'll have to try something, we can't stay here forever!" Harry snapped.
"Why not, huh? Why not just kill ourselves now. This can't be a dream; you just slapped me so hard I would have felt it in your sleep! I can't deal with this!" Jake said then broke down sobbing again.
Harry felt sympathy, he almost couldn't believe it. If this were a dream where did it come from? He had never wanted anything like this in his whole life. How did this happen? Better yet how could this happen? "Well I need you to come with me. I need you because you look like my sister and that should convince Lori that we're us!"
They dressed up in their male clothes, which now fit them rather uncomfortably. They walked past the desk and payed the bill. The woman behind the counter was in rollers and a mu-mu. She looked over to the couple suspiciously then plucked the cigarette from her mouth and tapped the ashes off the end onto the floor. Harry was disgusted and Jake turned away to hide the tears she had been crying.
"Wadda ya want?" the woman said in thick Brooklyn accent. Her voice sounded strained and weak from years of smoking.
"We want to check out of room 213?" Harry asked surprised at the sultry tone and pitch of the voice.
"We don't got a room 213, I'm too superstitious you hussy!" she shouted. She spat something into a can on the floor after clearing her throat. Then lit up another cigarette. "The standard fee is 10 dollars an hour but after 1:00 am I gotta charge youse guys the full night. 40 bucks!"
Harry was nervous and didn't understand that hussy remark. She also did not understand the remark about having a room 213. All this was a bit overwhelming. Besides, she thought, the old bat seemed a bit senile. She forked over the cash and rushed out the door. The door man looked at them and huffed. "Lesbians, what a perfectly good waste of a beautiful woman!" he said under his breath. All the while eyeing Harry.
They scrambled through the parking lot afraid for their lives. But they finally got to Harry's car. They tore out of that parking lot as if the devil himself was chasing them, little did they know, he had already caught them.
Marlene was patient, but then, so was Lori. Lori had the advantage, she knew Marlene was scared witless. Something flicked across Lori's vision and she jumped towards it. The mouse squeaked fearfully. Her tail was caught in the paw and she couldn't move.
Slowly the black fur started to recede into the cat's skin. Her paws stretched and grew outwards as did her legs. The became long and smooth and the paws grew into hands. The fore legs became arms and the hinds became legs as the cat became a beautiful dark haired woman. She had no clothes but she waved her hands and second later that was rectified. She was so upset that she failed to notice that she still had a giant cat's tail swishing back and forth under her skirt in back of her.
She still held the mouse tail between her fingers. "Okay Marlene, I have had it with this game of cat and mouse. Tell me what you know?" Lori said. The mouse continued to squeak and struggle to get out of her fingers. "Change back now and tell me!" she shouted.
"Tell you what?" a woman's voice said from behind her.
Lori looked at Marlene then back to the mouse. She shrieked and dropped the mouse. "Ahh, I hate mice!" she yelled.
The mouse hit the floor then disappeared into a puff of smoke. "It was only a decoy!" Marlene said.
Lori could feel the anger build up inside of her, she was burning red like a hot coal. Marlene knew Lori would explode if she tried to throw cold water on this.
"Don't be such a wimp, you weren't afraid when you thought it was me!" Marlene stated trying to blow the fire out with dynamite. She was walking an edge.
"That's different. I didn't think you were a real mouse. Yechhhh!" she shivered.
"All right I'll tell you what happened then..." Marlene started innocently. Then she heard someone at the door.
Marlene smiled wickedly, "In fact, that's probably your answer right now!"
They both walked over to the door. Marlene practically skipped and Lori cautiously approached the door. Someone was struggling with the lock. She had been meaning to get the lock fixed and she knew that Harry would never have the time or the will to fix it. That was the only reason she did not fry the person trying to get in, the only person it could possibly be was Harry. Why he wasn't upstairs sleeping she did not know, but she would find out then kill him.
She was surprised when the two women walked through the door. She gasped in shock and dropped the coffee cup she had been holding. Marlene, who had been all smiles, was dumbstruck.
"Who the hell are you?" Marlene asked the women who came through the door.
Lori was just as shocked but she managed to stammer out,"Who are you and why are you wearing my husbands clothes?"
Then it hit her,"Oh my goddess, THE SPELL!" she shouted intensely with anger, after all that had happened tonight this was the last straw. "You asshole! You were cheating on me!"
Marlene stuttered,"Th-th-is isn't what I wanted, what, how?" she did not make any sense, but Lori heard her and stopped just short of frying the woman she thought was Harry.
"What are you talking about Marlene!" Lori demanded.
"Lori," Harry started,"I don't..."
"Who the hell are you?" Lori asked the red head.
Marlene spoke up and said,"That would be your lying, cheating, pinche maricon, haggus sucking husband of yours." she said coldly. "I don't know who the other one is."
"You stay out of this Marlene you knew something about this. Which one of you is Harry?" Lori asked.
"Should be Sherry now..." Marlene added but broke off when Lori looked at her.
"That would be me," the red head said,"what do you know about this Lori." the woman asked.
Lori pointed at her then mumbled a few words. Harry felt something pull at the base of her spine. She felt orange fur sprout on her body. Then she felt her face push out into a muzzle. She felt her eyes change and the whole room changed in her vision. Then she felt her ears grow reshape into a feline form. She felt her tail swishing back and forth behind her. then she hunched down a little then the sensations stopped.
"Mrrrowhat have you done?" she asked in a slightly higher voice.
"Damn, I never can get that one right. Well we can't have you running around like that!" She said then waved her hand. A light glowed in her hand then reached out towards Harry. It wrapped around her neck and formed a solid leash. "Now what were you saying dear." she said with a wicked tone in her voice.
"I was hoping that, mrrow, you wouldn't find out like this. mrrowr." the feline female mewed.
"And who is this? The spell should have put you in her body and left her in your comatose body." Lori spat coldly.
"Spelllll, rrrrrr, what spell?" Harry asked.
Marlene stepped up to her and petted her and scratched behind her ear which was slightly covered by a mane of orange fur. Harry began purring despite herself. "Didn't you know yuir wee lass over there was a witch, and a darn good one at that." she cooed.
"Prrrrrr, what?" she said a bit confused. "I knew she was a bit mean at times..." she started then she recieved a shock from the collar.
"Don't finish that sentence. I didn't turn you into a pig but in can be arranged. Now finish telling me who this is." Lori snapped.
"I wasn't sleeping with another woman honest. I was sleeping with a man because I had too! mrrrrowr!" she said practically hissing.
Lori almost didn't believe what she was hearing. "What? Why? That can't be true!" she said.
Jake was stunned beyond words at the things that were going on. Her mind was gone. Harry went over to her as far as she could with the leash and said, "This used to be Jake Johnson myowwrr boss. What kind of name would Jake be for a woman!"
Then Marlene snapped, "My goddess! She's telling the truth. The spell couldn't handle the fact that he was making love to a man. It adapted the best way it could. It must have turned him into a woman to comply with the rules. Then it could switch the bodies!"
"So!" Lori sounded venomous,"He was still cheating on me. I should leave you like that and move away where you could never find me!"
"You don't understand, mrrrowr, he forced me to do it. I was skimming off the top of the company, Jake caught me and blackmailed me into sleeping with him. Telll her Jake." he said turning to the scared brunette. But she was long gone.
Realizing everything was going wrong for Harry, Marlene saw her chance. "It serves you right, you bloody devil, you ought to be ashamed of yuirself. Dishonoring this poor beautiful woman."
Harry and Lori turned to Marlene and said,"Shutup!" in unison.
She backed down knowing this was going just how she wanted. Lori paced back and forth for a few minutes before stopping in front of Harry. "So why should I believe you?" Lori asked him warily.
"I love you and I can't possibly blame you for feeling the way you do." she said then lowered her head shamefully. "I wouldn't believe any of this stuff if I wasn't living it. I love you and I wouldn't do anything to hurt you on purpose. If you choose not to believe my story I understand but we made vows to each other and I take those very seriously. Mrrowrr, I love you." she said turning away from the woman she loved.
Marlene studied the scene. She looked into Lori's face and saw that she had made her decision. "Wait a minute, you're not going to buy into this little charade are you? So what if Sherry slipped and admitted a 399 dollar mistake that didn't mean that Sherry had to sleep with Jacqueline there. What about your feelings?" she harped.
"Look Marlene I didn't tell him I was a witch when we got married so I understand about keeping secrets. Neither of us should have kept these to our selves but we did. As long as we don't do it again, and if we still love each other..." she said almost in tears.
Harry was staring at Marlene suspiciously. She noticed but didn't say anything. Just as her wife was trailing off, she spoke up,"How did you know that figure Marlene? How did you know something made me slip?"
She was stunned for a minute. "I...I... Just guessed I mean, it had to be something like that. I mean let me guess you were in a hotel in room, oops." she said nervously looking back and forth for an escape route.
"Yes speaking of hotel rooms. Wasn't it funny that the lady at the desk found it odd we said we were checking out of room 213? That she didn't have one?" he asked.
Lori was beginning to eye Marlene with suspicion. She saw that and said nervously,"She didn't say that I..." she said knowing the game was completely up.
"You set me up! You led Jake to find that mistake and you had something to do with that hotel room didn't you. I oughta!" Harry said as she tugged at the leash that was holding her. "No you won't Harry. I will!" Lori said then waved at Lori as she jumped towards the door. She froze in mid stride, knowing that struggling against this type of rage. "Why Marlene? I trusted you, I love you. Why would you try to hurt me?"
Marlene was scared but she answered truthfully. "I have always loved you and he isn't good enough for you. Given the chance he would have cheated on you. I thought that his woman supervisor would catch the mistake. I didn't plan this but it worked out almost the same. I love you Lori. I'm sorry."
"No, I am. I should apologize for you and for myself. The coven will decide your fate. I'll restore you now, but not Jake. Even though Marlene set her up, she could have handled the situation better."
With that Harry felt the fur recede, and, her body and face return to normal. She felt herself try to pull away from her body. She felt dizzy but her spirit would not leave. Finally Lori collapsed. Harry pulled herself together. She felt normal, except for a cat tail sticking out of a hole in her pants. She ignored that and rushed over to Lori.
"Are you all right?" Harry asked.
"Yes, but I can't restore you now. I used up too much energy in the spell and then playing hide and seek with Marlene. I'm using too much energy to hold her and I'm exhausted." she said trying to gulp down air in panting breaths.
"How long then?" Harry asked.
"At least a month. Maybe two. And that's if I don't use any other magic. I just have to meditate and recharge."
"Oh great what about Jake?" he said pointing to the homely woman in a waking coma.
"All I can do for now is make her accept what she is and make it seem like a dream. I've called for help and they should be here soon. They can make her think she has been Jacqueline all her life, until we can restore her." she said as Harry held her close trying to comfort her.
"I love you!" Lori declared.
"I love you too!" Harry replied.
"I guess you better get used to going by the name Sherry for a while!"
They both laughed and laughed and held tight to each other.
...One month later.
"The council has made their decision." The voice boomed loudly. If there was any emotion it didn't show through. Marlene looked around nervously. Lori was just as nervous for her.
"Marlene MacShamus Valdez! You have been found guilty of conspiring to use the coven to achieve your own ends." The voice trailed off leaving silence for a moment. This seemed like an eternity to Marlene. The voice Continued,"However after a plea for leniency on your behalf, we have rendered a fair judgment. You were responsible for the poor soul known as Jake Porter, now known as Jacqueline, becoming unbalanced. You are sentenced to help this soul find her balance again and to return her mind. You will be subject to random inspections by us and you will be under the supervision of Lorilei until such time as we have deemed you repentent. Though you should remember, that life is a circle. Eventually it turns and brings back what you have called forth times three. You are not entirely finished though. We may add punishment as warranted. We have spoken" The voice boomed and trailed off leaving everything in darkness.
Suddenly Marlene felt strange. Her beauty was marred. Her flesh became somewhat rough and her formerly hairless skin was now marred by short stubble. Her hair became dull and wiry. She looked almost Identical to what Jake now looked like.
Jake had been returned to his now feminine body, but it's beauty had also been greatly reduced. They were both now merely average if not below. They now had to shave certain parts of their body like everyone else. Beauty in this sense of justice had to be earned.
Lori still didn't have enough power to produce the antidote for the spell. She had the power to transfer Harry back into his body. She had given Harry's body the look of beauty that had formerly been enjoyed by Marlene and Jacqueline.
"I don't think that I'll ever get used to this!" Harry said. Lori was sitting next to him in the pew in the unnatural courtroom in a natural setting. It looked like your average courtroom, the judges bench the jurors box and pews for the public to watch. The walls were trees and the darkened sky was the judge's bench.
Lori stood up and held out her hand to the dark haired woman,"Well, Sherry, I've had a lot longer to get used to this than you have."
Sherry accepted the hand up and smoothed out the black skirt she was wearing. "I definitely don't ever think I'll get used to this!" She said as her tail swished back and forth behind her.
"Sorry about that, I don't know Why it transferred over when we put you back in your own body." She said lifting her skirt and indicating her own tail. "I never got the hang of that spell. We have to leave now. This courtroom will phase out in a few minutes and we don't wnat to be here when that happens." she said and led Sherry to to the door.
They opened the door and walked through right into the middle of dense foliage. Sherry seemed confused. "I don't think I'll ever get used to that either."
Lori and Sherry walked into the forest on the way back to their home and talked on the way. "I feel I have to apologize for not telling you about my being a witch." Lori started off.
Sherry saw Lori lower her head and said,"No need to apologize. I love you for what you are not what you do." Sherry felt her bra slip a little so she adjusted it and her red blouse. Lori stopped for a second and helped Sherry adjust it.
"But that is who I am and what I do. I'm just regretting that we had any secrets from each other. I've been around a long time, and while I've seen times change, most people don't. Remember it wasn't more than a few hundred years ago that they burned witches at the stake. I figured if I told you about myself you would warm up the barbecue." She laughed.
"I love you and I wouldn't have held that against you. Besides I love eating you raw." They both laughed and started walking again. "I'm the one who should apologize, I only wanted the best for you Lori. But I was a little embarrassed about my problem and didn't know how to approach you with it." They continued walking.
After what seemed like an eternity, Sherry broke the silence. "So how long will it be before you can change me back?" Sherry asked.
"Maybe a month, maybe two. It took a lot more energy than I had just get you to this point, and I am way too weak to even try for a few months." Lori explained.
"Well maybe I can get used to this, but I don't know." As they continued to walk, Sherry looked at Lori and asked, "If I can't change back, will you still love me?"
Lori continued to walk and when she didn't answer, Sherry stopped in her tracks. Lori walked on for a few more steps then stopped. She turned around and her long black broomstick skirt twirled as she turned.
"Why do you think that Marlene assumed she even had a chance with me? I might get used to this arrangement as well." she said. Then she smiled sweetly, turned and skipped off.
Sherry raised and eyebrow, she took that as a yes. A very interesting yes. Sherry ran to catch up with Lori.
"You know if you stay like this it could have benifits."
Confused, Sherry asked,"How?"
"I felt great power in you. It's the reason it took me a while to put you back in your own body and why you resisted changing into a cat. You could take Marlene's place in our coven and, I might add, you could be even more powerful than she was." Lori said while Sherry was trying to keep up with her.
"Wow! Really? I guess I could learn Magick and transform myself back." Sherry said.
"It doesn't work that way. We are a special order, women only. You would have power in our circle only as a woman."
Sherry seemed to think that over,"Well I do want to get back at Marlene..."
"Don't finish that sentence. Look this thinking is what got Marlene in trouble. Our basic tenet is the circle. It all comes around. Whatever you send out you get back in spades. Understand?" Lori told her sternly. Sherry just nodded.
"Speaking of Marlene,"Sherry said,"Does she know you were the one who pleaded on her behalf?"
"No. She might suspect but she can't know for sure. She can never know. If she knew she could influence me not to report back to the council and that could be dire for all of us." There was little emotion in her voice, as if to demonstrate how strong a warning that was.
"She can eventually redeem herself, regain her beauty and some of her power, but she will never again be part of the Thirteen. You will learn of this in time depending on how you decide. Jake was not innocent in this so she will remain a woman for the rest of her life. Magick will be the instrument of her healing, and Marlene and her will be bound heart and soul. I think that Marlene will grow quite fond of her. They have much in common."
"Well they can have each other. I don't need anymore head aches." Sherry said. "I think I will take you up on that offer. Obviously I have a lot of time to think about it."
"I would say so. You would make a good addition to our circle and I want to love you for a long time to come." Lori said and pulled Sherry close and wrapped an arm around her. They kissed each other briefly but passionately. They walked faster now breaking through to civilization onto the street where their home resided.
"So how long exactly have you been around?" Sherry asked.
"Don't EVEN go there Sherry."
The End.