The following is the original December 21, 2014 release of A Vile Doohickey, a novella by Natalie Neumann. Natalie does not recommend that you try to read the original work due to its low quality, structural issues, and grammatical errors. Instead, she encourages you to read the summary included in Volume 14: A Vile Doohickey of The Saga of Vincent Dawn and the development history described in Volume 09: A Vile Doohickey of Natalie Rambles About The Saga of Vincent Dawn to better understand the content of this novella.
Chapter 01: German Gift
Okay… I think I’m ready for this recap session, Miss Dusk.
Please, as I told you before, Verde is fine. Our relationship should be on a level where we can use each other’s given name. True, it is not a typical relationship, but I see no reason to not use our first names.
Right, right. I just feel a bit nervous as memories are colliding and merging in my head. I mean, I’ve never been the best public speaker, and I want to figure out how to best recap what happened for this experiment of yours.
I appreciate your concern, but there is little reason for any form of worry. You did great during our previous session, and am certain the words will come to you naturally.
Alright, here I go…
The story begins in the town of Oransen, Illinois. A decent sized community, not quite a suburb of a major city, but only a few miles away from one and boasting of a population nearing sixty thousand. The main setting for the story is in one of the nicer neighborhoods, specifically one fairly sizable house. Two stories tall, large connected garage, and a nice looking exterior that was being brushed by the cool winds of late autumn as winter was approaching. Rapidly so, as it always seems to. It was a rather quiet afternoon, that of November the fifteenth, 2014 if you wish to know, and at 13:33 a young man popped out of the house to respond to what he believed to be the doorbell. That young man was me, Jad Novus.
I am not the sort who enjoys describing themselves, so I’ll try to be a bit blunt. I am Caucasian, white, whatever term you prefer, stood at 1.8 meters tall, weighed 55 kilograms, turned eighteen as of last month, and has a head of fairly messy curly brown hair. At the time I was wearing a recently purchased, and pretty pricey, jacket I only wore while at home, some nice khakis beneath it, and some thick socks beneath that.
Getting back on track, as I opened the door to remind myself of why I was bundled up inside, I failed to see anybody outside of my home, but did notice a package on my doorstep. My first thought of who it was for had been quickly answered as I lifted the box, which was about the size of a hardcover 300 page novel. On its largest side I spied my name, Jad Novus, typed on the box itself in Times New Roman. That was all which was placed on the box, with no shipping information of label or anything to signify what this package, which I did not order, contained.
Regardless, I bought this package inside to investigate its contents, returning to my home. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t a rather well decorated space, incredibly sizable for my mother, father, and myself. On that note, my parents were not home at the time, with my mother out doing errands, while my dad was out doing whatever he pleased for however long he desired. This meant I could pursue this package without being questioned. Upon walking upstairs to my room, I took a pair of scissors to cut open the box, revealing something I did not expect, though that could mean pretty much anything.
Inside the package was some sort of remote control. A rather bulky rectangular object that was turquoise in the color of its body, with a trio of red buttons on top of it. The aptly named buttons 1 and 2 were side by side, with the third, the Go button, being centered right beneath the two. All of the buttons were very sizable, especially the Go button, but it was almost comical to a certain extent, and the remote looked almost like a toy as a result.
Beyond that sole object, the box was totally empty. No manual or instructions, just an object that I could not identify. I did find a series of screw on the back, but I was hardly in the mood to tinker and figure out what this thing was suppose to do. Especially when you consider that I was expecting a guest a few minutes ago. Okay, she said 13:30, but I knew she meant 13:45 or 14:00. As such, I was a bit surprised when I heard my doorbell ring once more as the time was 13:41.
I casually made my way to the door, which was being knocked on in a manner that was familiarly frantic. I opened it to reveal a young woman by the name of Maxxie Flare. Or if I may use her full name, Maxxisaurus Omega Flare… I am not kidding, that’s the name her parents gave her about eighteen years ago. She was bundled head to toe in her winter clothing, a bit unnecessarily early if I do say so myself, but based on the selection of coat, hat, boots,and mittens, she spent a while selecting her outfit and making sure she looked cute in it. She even selected boots that seemed to elevate her stature of 1.71 meters. I promptly let her in as she began conversing with me while taking off her winter gear.
“So, ya got somethin you wanna bring to my attention just to get it outta the way?” Maxxie asked, obviously relating to why she came here in the first place.
“If you are talking about the present, you should probably wait until everybody gets here. Or not, it’s your party after all.” I said as I walked around her.
“Pfft! This ain’t no party, Jad! It’s the party prep! ‘Cos if I’m having a party we’re gonna do it ‘til we can’t party no more!” Maxxie said as she hung up her coat and backpack before placing her boots in the boot tray.
At this point, it was far easier to get a look at Maxxie. She was ‘Blasian’ her words, not mine. Had a couple pounds on me due to a far less than stellar diet, making her about 65 kilograms from what I could gather. Not that she ever struck me as discouraged about her eight, and did manage to look cute in an outfit made of a violet sweater, a black leather overall skirt that went to her knees, and some thick blue and purple stockings. Oh, and her shoulder length hair was even messier than mine as she took off her wool hat.
“Whatever you want to call it, the others aren’t going to be here for about forty-five minutes. I mentioned as I began walking up the stairs, expecting Maxxie to follow.
“Garf, I could’ve sworn I coordinated our time stances properly” Maxxie sighed as she placed her hands behind her head and walked behind me.
I really wasn’t sure what Maxxie had planned today, if much of anything. As far as I was concerned it was really just another Saturday I got to spend with my friends, except that I planned to give the birthday girl a present. It was a Playstation TV after she deep fried her Vita… it is a long story, with a 64GB memory card and the first two Danganronpa titles… Which I actually added to her account, as she lost about half of her DS games over the years and I was not going to give her something with less volume than one of her teeth. Point is it was something that cost about $300 and I believed that she would like.
That may sound a lot from a high schooler, but when your parents offer to give you an allowance of $250 a month, with an additional $500 after your birthday and Christmas, you tend to have the ability to buy things like this. Now, one can easily question whose parents can afford $4000 to give to their child annually, but if you looked at most of the details of my house, you would realize that they had money to burn, which meant I had money to make my room look like something to envy. Though having the capacity to comfortably fit four people at once was certainly a plus right from the get-go.
A $1,500 gaming PC was hooked up to both a 1440p monitor and a sizable TV whose inputs were all filled by an assortment of game consoles. It was across from a series of bookshelves that balanced the book part with games, figures, comics, and a few miscellaneous collectibles. With the walls to the side containing an array of high quality prints I framed. The decorations were undoubtedly excessive, but I did try to make it look nice despite clearly being either a teenager’s room. One Maxxie was familiar with to the point where she immediately saw my recently received remote sitting on my computer desk.
“Ey, so whatcha got here? Some sort of… doohickey?” Maxxie said as she lifted the device I received in the mysterious package and began pushing the buttons to no avail… At least at first.
Flailing the remote about, she eventually ended up pointing it at me, which caused something of a chill along my spine as she pressed the 1 button. It wasn’t anything too concerning, but Maxxie, being a good pal for a decade, was concerned.
“…You okay Jad?” Maxxie asked, putting down the ‘doohickey’.
“Yeah, it’s just that… I have no idea what that thing is, I found it in a box outside my house and… I take it you didn’t place it for me to uncover.” I muttered, quickly mentally debating if that possibility would be fitting of her character.
“Pfft, I wouldn’t give you something I don’t know the name of, let alone what it’s supposed to do. It is truly the electric nigma, potentially a doohickey most vile and foul! The Vile Doohickey summoned by the divines to blight us mere mortals with powers we ought not to possess!” Maxxie said, quickly turning her tone about and proceeding to shout while standing on top of my couch.
“Lady Flare, surely you jest that we would become the chosen ones to possess such a wicked present. How may we even perceive its true functions?” I replied to her in an overly dramatic tone, going along with her nonsense.
“Bah, I know the dangers, but fear nothing they may send my way. Obtain the item, welp, and thrust it against me so I may scoff in its face!” Maxxie shouted, laying down on the couch and posing herself in a manner that, quite frankly, would look as if she was coming on to me if somebody barged in.
“Very well, Lady Flare. I have already been stung by the Vile Doohickey’s foulness, but it is a curse I fear not inflicting on others. As such, have at you!” I said as I picked up the device and pointed it at her. With the button I pressed being number 2, mostly to see if it had a different effect… which it really did not.
“Woah! Um… You ever get a shiver you may blame on something that has no reason to do something like that?” Maxxie nervously uttered, returning to a normal sitting position and manner of speech… for her anyhow.
“Oh, so it did… Huh. This thing is pretty weird.” I murmured as I examined the Vile Doohickey.
“Yeah. So you got no clue where it came from or what it does?” Maxxie playfully said, jumping up off the couch to peek over my shoulder at the Vile Doohickey.
“No idea. I haven’t a clue what it connects to, but with only three buttons, what could this oversized remove be used for?” I asked, moving around the Vile Doohickey and guessing that it weighed two pounds.
“Hm… lemme try this before we put it in the trash!” Maxxie said before grabbing the remote from me.
She positioned herself with a single foot resting on my bed while pointing the Vile Doohickey at the wall as if she expected something bad to happen from pressing a big red button. Something did… something that neither of us had any idea was possible. It was a sensation humans in general had yet to experience as far as I was aware, and one that I would be getting rather used to as this tale goes on.
Lovely, we have yet to even get started, and we have already come to a stopping spot.
My apologies Miss Dusk. I simply believed that it would be good to end the first segment before a description that would be a page long. Plus, it leaves a sense of suspense, which I believed was part of good storytelling.
Apparently my sense of sarcasm requires some tuning up. Or I must at least adjust my ability to express tone.
I think your sense of sarcasm does need tuning up, as you failed to see I responded to your sarcasm with my own sarcasm.
Oh… please continue with this episode after taking your designated break, Jad.
No thanks, I think I’m ready to keep on rolling, Verde.
…Well then, please describe this never before experienced sensation for me, Mister Novus.
Chapter 02: Dissonant Discovery
When Maxxie slammed her thumb on the button, I was not expecting… anything really. Yet I was met with what I would describe as a foggy feeling. Almost as if I yawned, or spaced out for a second. I felt as if I simply blinked after she pressed the Go button. Yet as I opened my eyes up again, my perspective had rather severely changed. I was looking down at the Vile Doohickey a few inches from my face, when really I was about a meter away from Maxxie, who had been holding the device. I dismissed this as fairly unalarming, but as I looked closer at the Vile Doohickey, I spied the fingers of Maxxie. Fairly understandable as she was holding the remote, but then I wondered just where I had apparently relocated myself since closing my eyes for a fraction of a second. Oh, and in case you think I’m just kind of slow, I’m really just drawing out my thoughts in order to retain the details you requested.
Where was I… Right. One of my legs was elevated, and I quickly looked down to see Maxxie’s leg on the bed, as she had positioned herself in an attempt to demonstrate the “flare” she claims to be literally named after. However, as I looked at the bed, I did not see anything I could be leaning against, in fact, I did not see my legs at all. I then began to move my arms out of the seemingly awkward positions I’ve placed them in, where I noticed a distinct weight in my right hand.
Without thinking, I placed it towards my face, revealing the very Vile Doohickey that Maxxie was holding. However, the hands that were wrapped around it certainly made me believe that was still the case, as the skin was far too dark to be my own, and the nail proportions were not quite right.
“Huh.” I murmured, but I did not hear my own voice ringing through my head, instead it sounded far more feminine and unmistakably familiar.
It was enough for me to try moving my leg, and observe Maxxie’s doing the same. I then responded to this by looking around the room, where immediately saw myself. Same clothing, face, and such, but there was a very curious look on my face. One that displayed a sense of amusement that I seldom showed to others, as it was fairly hard to trigger. Things grew even more troubling as I made note of how my hands were finger deep in my pants, and looked to be going even deeper.
“Wh-What?” I shouted, hearing Maxxie’s voice crack as I did so, and assisting in the construction of a theory I was trying to dismiss by obtaining an nonexistent truth.
“Wowzers!” My body shouted as its right hand was inside of its pants.
“Yo, this thing is nuts! How’s it doing that?” My body said once again as I could see an unmistakable bulge in my pants.
“S-Stop!” I tried to say, only to hear Maxxie’s voice speak the same words.
I then began rushing towards my body… which sounded far less awkward in my head, but I just so happened to slip on the hardwood floor and trip into it, something that sounds even more awkwards. My body naturally fell down, with myself laying on top of it. I then spied my lips moving as my own body stared at me, saying my own name.
“Jad?” My body asked, very confused as it was staring at me, mirroring my own perplexedness with the situation.
“What the hell is going on?” I questioned, hearing Maxxie’s voice speak my mind once again.
“Huh? Well, it’s pretty obvs, dude! You done got yourself a body swap remote!” My body said with quite a large amount of glee and in a familiar tone.
I then looked down at the hands I was controlling. The skin color was right for this accusation, and as I looked down at the a chest covered in a familiar black leather and purple cotton, both of which were extended past my chest, it was hard for me to deny such a possibility. But, I still freaked out.
“W-What? How is- Who put- Why!” My mind was coming up with questions faster than I could manage to speak them, but for whatever reason this only made the person who I could only assume to be Maxxie residing in my body to let out a giggle that I do not recall ever so much as attempting to ever make.
“Kukukukuku! Ah Jad, such a stick in the mud. No worries about it, if we got the thingamabob, we can avoid any badness that could come with it. For now, let’s think of how we can enjoy this situation in the… thirty-seven minutes we got!” Maxxie said, being remarkably comfortable with this, and patting my body’s pants as she finished speaking.
“…What are you saying, Maxxie?” I asked, trying to anticipate hearing Maxxie’s voice and confirming that it was truly her in my body, through there was little reason to doubt so.
“Remember that Oedipus thing we had to read back in Q1?” I heard my voice say back at me in something that had gradually lost its shock.
“Yeah… it’s about a man who gouges his eyes out after he unknowingly commits incest… What does it have to do with our current situation?” I asked while gradually getting up from ontop of my own body. Still far from used to my current status.
“No, not that bit. Remember the stuff our Teach said ‘bout that fortune teller?” Maxxie asked as she moved about my body as if she were trying to get comfy inside of it.
“I think it was an Oracle and… you mean the stuff about how he tried to settle a bet with the gods, became a woman, said they had better orgasms, and was blinded by a goddess because of it, and then Zeus gave him the ability to have sight beyond that of humans?” I said, reciting the information far more accurately than I anticipated.
“Damn son! You’ve been hitting those book, haven’tcha?” Maxxie shouted as she posed my body in a manner that made me glad that nobody was watching us.
“Well, no, I tend to be pretty good at remembering very odd bits of information, such as that. But I’m still on a totally different level than Zoe.” I said, moving Maxxie’s body around a bit as I attempted to follow her example of getting more comfortable in my current body, but that was easier said than done.
The longer hair was certainly odd in itself, occasionally entering my field of vision, and brushing against what was my neck. While I noticed the sensation, it hardly felt concerning, likely due to how the hair was attached to Maxxie’s head. As for contorting her face, and I suppose limbs as well, it was far from alienating, but the different proportions, and the weight distribution prevented me from feeling completely comfortable moving at the moment.
I had been standing for a while, making small steps and such, but the concept of making any larger actions made me a bit worried inside, as if I would not be able to accurately control Maxxie’s body or misjudge how it would react. The rather tight clothing added an element of strangeness as well, as if I was being molded into this form, and was being held together by the rather warm clothing Maxxie had selected for this visit. Warmness as a whole seemed to engross me, along with a sense of energy that I would guess to be similar to having a cup of coffee, seeing as how I have not drank so much of a sip of that stuff.
It was all surprisingly welcoming, but hearing her voice be used at a very different tone going through my head made me feel a bit uneasy. I’d guess it was due to the similarities between my usage of her voice and Maxxie’s ‘Real Talk’ voice. I guess it was equally bizarre to see her prance about casually in my body, sending a sense of discomfort throughout the body I resided in, despite my best attempts to stay calm.
But I’m getting a bit off track with my thoughts, and do not believe I need to explain how different her, say, mouth felt from mine.
“Disregarding that can of old spam, what do ya say if we try that out?” Maxxie bursted, rubbing my body’s hands vigorously.
“T-Try what out?” I asked, hoping that she was not being as transparent as I believed her to be.
“Nah, it’s not the final base or any of that jazz. Just some private time with each other’s privates.” Maxxie mentioned with a wide grin.
“Maxxie, I don’t think you…” I began saying before she decided to turn on her ‘Real Talk’ mode and gestured me onto my bed with her..
“Jad, I’ve told you for a while that I am completely open about this kinda stuff, and, really, I don’t care all that much ‘bout whatever happens if it is somebody I trust…. That, and I think it’d be a badical birthday gift.” Maxxie said before breaking character, referencing something I should explain about her, and me as well.
Saying that Maxxie Flare loves sex would be a very reductive statement when it is more true that Maxxie loves all things that are sexual in nature. It is a long story about her discovering an assortment of ‘sexually deviant’ materials from a very young age and… It may be a bit better to say she never underwent the stage where she thought that nudity was bad, or that some things are not elementary school appropriate topics. She learned to keep it under wraps after it got her suspended a few times, but she’s pretty much pansexual in the end, and has a 4TB hard drive full of weird porn that she keeps because she thinks it’s cool… it’s complicated, alright.
As such, having her talk to me about this made it clear that she really wanted this more than whatever I could spend on a birthday present for her, and I was left with a ‘but thou must’ scenario. As such I folded Maxxie’s arms- the arms of Maxxie’s body, which I was controlling, awkwardly over the same body’s chest and took a sigh before agreeing as a pleasing shiver went up my spine.
“Wahoo! So, what bathroom do ya want?” Maxxie shouted, jumping up on my bed before plopping back down.
We eventually settled that I would go into the second floor bathroom, while Maxxie would go downstairs. After a time period she pegged as being, “pretty short” we would then talk about our experiences and “see what happens when the other half of our rectangle of friendship is completed!” Meaning she planned on bringing this up to the two who were expected to join us in half an hour.
I was nervous as I opened the door to the familiar room I visited multiple times a day, letting out a groan as I looked down at the foreign body I was placed in. Still, I made a promise to a friend I’ve had since the first day of second grade and I was not planning to back down… Plus I was pretty curious.
But before you go and describe the toilet and bathroom rug you laid in, I think we should end this segment right here.
…I am fine going on, Verde. I mean, things don’t get hairy for a while.
Very well, I just wanted to leave a stopping point for our session.
…Why exactly?
In short, what I am recording is far easier to manage if I separate it into, say, chapters.
Okay, I guess…
In addition to that, I have… how to best explain it to you… Do you recall the major twist in Samurai Flamenco?
Which one? There were quite a few…
The one detailing who organized the sequence of events that happened in the show.
Oh… I… I’ll just continue from where I left off.
Chapter 03: Pleasing Perversion
Gah, now my mind’s gone to anime… What was that show’s name… Kokoro Connect? Yeah, that sounds right. It was a, in my opinion, very dull show that began with the premise about a group of friends switching bodies with each other. In one of the episodes, the concept of masturbating while in your friend’s body came up, and it turns out that two characters both masturbated to each other, while in one another’s bodies… I just remembered that due to how I was doing something similar, except I was being asked to, even though this may have been permanent for all we knew. Though I doubt the thought had crossed Maxxie’s mind, as it certainly has not crossed mine.
I was standing in the, fairly simplistically designed, second floor bathroom, alone, knowing that I had free reign on Maxxie’s body, and she would not judge me for what I did while isolated in here. I had just over twenty minutes before the company I was expecting would arrive, and seeing as how I was in the body of the birthday girl, I was anticipating things would get, at best, pretty damn weird before this day was all over. But before I could see what high strangeness boded me in the future, I had to cum in my best friend’s body, which sent a very weird message to somebody whose limited sexual attraction was more or less based on the decade old bonds they’d formed.
The question of where to get started appeared in my mind, with nudity being the first answer my mind threw out. I was certainly not that comfortable with the act of being naked as Maxxie, who I’ve admittedly seen naked at least… twenty times. Besides, it was not necessary aside from removing one article of clothing, or rather two. You see, even when not wearing a skirt, Maxxie made sure to wear modesty shorts over her panty. The only justification I ever got from her is that, to her, panty shots never made sense in regards to being erotic, plus the shorts were comfy and easy to wear.
I took a deep breath before carefully pulling off the modesty shorts, and her panty as well, off and gently placing them near the bathroom door. The act of bending over to do that, however, sent a sensation I never felt, as I lacked the parts beforehand. Feeling air brush against it had me a bit worried, but as I recalled Maxxie’s claims that I may do whatever I please, my guilt lessened, and I felt I should try to enjoy these new feelings… Even if I wanted to be careful with this and not possibly sour a decade of friendship.
As such, I decided to leave her crotch alone for now, and explore her average to above average sized chest. After gently grabbing them and giggling slightly, I decided it would be easier without as many clothes, and began unbuttoning the overall skirt Maxxie had been wearing, placing it right on top of her underwear after I wiggled out of its, as Maxxie would likely call it, ‘leathery clutches’.
It was here where I caught a look at the mirror I had been ignoring, as I normally do while in the bathroom, but I almost jumped when I spied Maxxie in there, pausing, and then recalling I was looking at her reflection, while I was inside of her body. It made me think that, while this may be temporary, her body was technically mine. As such, looking at the mirror, my heart practically racing, I lifted off my sweater to reveal an appropriately skin colored bra that I, still looking at the mirror, began to unhook, and reveal the breasts I had been given.
I naturally felt guilty doing this, but once I imagined Maxxie’s reaction to hearing that I cowered from something I had permission to pursue, I began to place my hands on my breasts, covering the nipples, and gently caressing them. It was a feeling I expected to feel very awkward, when really extremely was a more fitting adjective. Pile on a degree of, well, arousal as I smiled while I worked my hands away from her breasts, and all over her very smooth body. From the ticklish belly to her smooth neck, her adorable face, eventually reaching, lo and behold, her crotch that I had intentionally never really thought much of, but was pleased as I nervously moved my hand towards it. I heard Maxxie’s voice- my voice pant heavily as I reached towards what I could, eventually sticking my fingers in there and letting out a very feminine sounding yelp. I grabbed a towel, and subconsciously gave a very Maxxie-esc wink and grin in the mirror as I sat down on the cloth.
“There is nothing wrong with this.” I kept telling myself, and with her body’s libido revved up, I felt compelled to at least ejaculate before pausing. It was a frantic series of motions, my hands flying about my body, and my lips letting out a barrage of noises that eventually became as natural as the sensations. I almost forgot about how I was not really in my own body as, quite simply, everything felt both right and wonderful. As such I continued until, expectedly, I felt a decent quantity of warm goo hit my hands, while a mix of relief and pleasure coursed through my body… along with a morsel of shame… But then I recalled Maxxie’s semi-regular utterance of the phrase, “Shame is for dummies!” I then repeated those words with my borrowed voice.
Doing that made me let out another giggle as I looked down at Maxxie’s body. It was not perfect by any means, but looking at it gave me a bizarre confidence in my actions. At the same time, looking down at a strange liquid made me realize that this towel needs to be washed, while I had to clean my crotch. I had no clue how I was expected to do that as, well, I certainly did not observe the act of intercourse based on how I did not find it to be erotic.
My idea for cleaning up involved taking a damp washcloth down there, and removing whatever remained with water covering the soft shaven skin. The plan ultimately worked, even if the cold temperature of the washcloth did send an unwanted, but pleasing shiver down my spine as I let out a yelp. Afterwards, I quickly removed the bodily fluids from the cloth by rinsing it and then leave it to dry on top of the bath faucet.
It was here where I felt more than a bit discomforted by the lack of… support I felt in certain areas, and began dressing myself in Maxxie’s clothing. The process took longer than I expected, as it was a bit easy to misaim a leg or arm when not used to your own proportions, yet I was fully clothed at the end, and only looked slightly more disheveled than Maxxie did when I was done with the process of strapping her overall skirt back on.
Back to the towel, recalling the quantity of ‘liquid’ that had hit the object made me a bit paranoid about my ability to remove it all, and I then decided that I may as well just begin washing the bathroom towels in order to hide something that could be very hard to explain if confronted about it by my mother. So, I set off to place them all into the washer.
Taking care with my motions, I made my way downstairs, heading for the laundry room, which was located right next to the kitchen. It was a bit abnormal, but it certainly was convenient for somebody who was in charge of the preparation of food and cleaning of clothes. On my way, however, I heard a familiar voice speaking in a familiar manner, though they were not familiar in the same fashion..
“Word up lassie! How was your trip to heaven?” Maxxie said, using my body’s voice and arms to grab me, resulting in me dropping the towels.
“Cripes, how many times have I told you not to do that?” I said, a bit disappointed that she did not remember the instance where she literally made me pee my pants back when we were in sixth grade.
“C’mon, that was the long-long-ago! I know your butt can get pretty hurt, but I was hoping with mine you’d have a bit more cushion for that kinda thing!” Maxxie said, folding her arms behind her head.
“You do realize that’s not how this whole mind switching works, right? We are simply in possession of one another’s physical traits and…” I said, correcting her while expecting her to interrupt me at a certain point to switch the topic to that of your bathroom adventures… Which she did.
“So, didja have a blast? I know I did… even if it lasted two minutes. Was thinking I’d get past three at the very least.” Maxxie said, looking disappointedly at her borrowed crotch.
“It was… I won’t lie and say it did not feel good. It felt great actually, but I was still really, really, really discomforted by the whole situation.” I explained, maybe adding one too many reallys at the end.
It was here where the question of time came into my mind, with the answer being clear when I spied into the kitchen, seeing 14:15 on the microwave. Meaning we had fifteen minutes before the other came over, and I had to take care of the remains of our experiment, which reminded me of something.
“So, um, Maxxie, what did you… What did you, you know… on?” I said, not wanting to say a word she immediately said for me.
“Cum? I took a little plastic baggie and went in that, balled it up in a tissue, and put that dastardly darn right in the wastebin! Or was I supposed to wash it?” Maxxie said, making me momentarily fearful of what she could do with my voice before being surprised by how quickly she devised such a method.
“Oh, erm, well I didn’t think that far, and ended up getting a towel… you know. So I should wash them, and then maybe we should… switch back? Just to see if it works, and then we can show it to Zoe and Shiaka.” I said, nervously hoping things would go smoothly, when I probably didn’t need to.
Maxxie agreed immediately, and I managed to take care of the towels by 14:21. We returned to my room, or based on our current bodily status, Maxxie’s room, where we quickly spied the Vile Doohickey on the floor. I grabbed the device… only to have Maxxie swoop in and take it from me, quickly pressing button 1 to send a jolt down my spine, and pressing 2 on herself… Wait, would it technically be… yeah, I doubt her gender identity would have suddenly changed after ejaculating as a male once.
As she pressed the Go button with my fingers, I quickly felt a colossal wave of familiar sensations rush against me in an instant. My head was a bit foggy for a second, but I quickly realized that the Vile Doohickey was in my hands, which were familiar in every facet. I regained the few inches of height I had previously, along with a the clothes I’d been wearing just under an hour ago. I did feel a bit winded by the situation, but I’d blame that to Maxxie’s… tendency to use up a lot of energy.
“Wahoo! The Flare is burning ferociously once more!” Maxxie said as she frantically moved about her limbs and jumped for joy.
“Yeah…” I said, properly realizing what the hell I was holding for what was pretty much the first time.
In my hands I possessed a device that could do what was once impossible and could be used for countless scenarios. It could easily change the world, transform society, or just establish a fortune. It was something that I was still not fully trusting of, as it could have a limited and difficult- or impossible to recharge battery for all I knew. It could also destroy the world if it fell into the wrong hands, as it would take a single well equipped terrorist organization to make their way into ruling the world… but as far as I knew, it was in an enclosed environment, and I had a bit of a tech expert coming over in a matter of minutes. …Or as I soon realized, seconds.
Before I could even investigate the odd feeling in my crotchal region, likely from Maxxie putting on my underwear, I heard the sound of the doorbell bounce across my home, and both Maxxie and I quickly realized who it was. We rushed down the stairs and made our way to the door, were I opened it to reveal the duo of Zoe- pronounced like ‘go’ but with a Z- Xing and Shiaka Kurosawa. Both of which we promptly let in after a little greeting, as they quickly began taking off their jackets and shoes.
However, I then realized that Maxxie was holding onto something I believed I placed down on my desk, the Vile Doohickey. I noticed as she positioned it at myself, and prepared to hit Go before I could stop her. I had no clue what she was doing, but as I felt the foggy sensation hit me once again, I knew things were going to be a whole lot more messy than I had expected.
Hold up Jad… so why did Maxxie do this?
Well, Verde, that’s a bit of a bloated question that I think I can simply answer by saying that… She thought it would be fun.
So, she didn’t have the revelation you did where you recognized what you crazy kids were playing with, right?
I honestly doubt it. I mean, I love the girl to death, but she’s never been the brightest person, and can get more than a little bit impulsive when an idea pops into her head.
Speaking of love, you mentioned that you were demisexual, so were you dec-
Look, it is a very complicated relationship I have with her. I am indeed attracted to her in… most ways one can be I suppose. But despite loving things sexual, she has never really implied that she wanted to become anything more than best friends, which I am totally okay with. Besides, I think it’d be sorta like having sex with one’s adopted sister based on how I’ve known her for over half my life.
There we go, now it is mentioned, and now it is known. But I can see your leg shaking, so I trust you are ready to keep this train going, right?
After I clear one thing with you first.
Go ahead.
Well, in order to prevent confusion, how about I refer to people by saying their name and then the body they are occupying?
How exactly do you want me to transcribe that?
Maybe it could be something like Maxxie, parenthese Jad, parenthese.
Hm… how about Maxxie(J) if you happened to have your body happens to be occupied by Maxxie again?
That sounds good, so… let’s continue.
Chapter 04: Major Miscalculation
Well, before I continue with the sequence of events, I should go into detail as to who exactly Zoe Xing and Shiaka Kurosawa are. Once more, they are friends I’ve had for several years, though they came along during the fifth and seventh grade respectively. Neither of which had many friends beforehand.
Zoe’s reason comes from a backstory that left him without much in life. Where he was told that he would need to study in order to survive in this world, that others would weigh him down, and that he had to go through the hardships of life, not accepting any handouts in order to build a thick skin that would weather any story… in first grade. As a result, the teachers of my school had quite a problem with him when he transferred for the final year of elementary school, and they had to talk him out of being so isolated. Well, I suppose forced is more fitting, as Maxxie and I were requested by a teacher to become friends with him… which sounds far weirder actually saying right now than it did at the time, I swear. We managed to get along for seven years so far, even if he is the sort of person who is often busy with things beyond Maxxie and myself. Things that are likely the reason why he’s in the top percent in our school, rocking a 4.0 GPA and all that jazz.
Shiaka on the other hand was constantly bullied back in her youth. The sort of bullying that ranged from teasing, to burning her school supplies, to breaking her arm, to straight up attempted murder with a brick. This lasted for years until her family moved to Oransen, where she was incredibly reclusive and terrified of others, until Maxxie, Zoe, and I were, once more, asked to help ease the ‘January Girl’ out of her shell. The results have been… less than amazing, as she is still very shy around others. Part of me believes that it may be due to how gifted she is when it comes to mathematics, programming, and the like, but then I remember the fucked up things future murders tried to do to her… No seriously, a lot of them did eventually become murderers.
As for what they looked like, seeing as how that is pretty important… Zoe was about 1.9 meters tall, 67 kilograms, most of which came from a refined physical appearance. He believed in training his body and mind, which was pretty evident just by looking at him… if he was in something other than a basic black and white three piece suit with a red tie that hid away, as Maxxie put it, “his sexiefficient form”. It was a form that was half Ukrainian, from his mother’s side, and half Chinese from his father’s side. With his sharp haircut and glasses, he had an air of maturity to him, which was more than a bit odd seeing as how he was technically the youngest of us four.
Standing next to Zoe, Shiaka looked pretty tiny. She was about 1.6 meters tall, and unlike Maxxie never shared her weight, but she certainly had no reason to if her waistline was concerned. She was petite as a whole, had a cute face, and it just so happened that she was wearing something that amplified her, to use another Maxxie-ism, “Kawi Factor”. Shiaka was wearing a stereotypical female Japanese high schooler winter uniform, which I could only guess was due to a special request from Maxxie. With a white blouse, blue skirt, and a cute sky blue ribbon along the collar, and some sensible navy leggings. I suppose it was fitting, as Shiaka was half Japanese, with the other half being a rather lengthy mix if one wishes to go by countries, but Hispanic sums it up rather well. Though as for where she had a natural dirty blonde hair color, even her parents haven’t a clue. Regardless, it did gracefully lightly brush her shoulders… as best as it could considering she had pulled it out of a wool hat.
Getting back on track, the fogginess returned to me as I noticed my viewing angle of the entryway had been changed to one facing towards the kitchen, implying I was placed in either Shiaka or Zoe’s body. Before so much as asking her the vital question of why she would do this, I decided I should figure out whose body I was currently in. For whatever reason the first idea that popped into my head was check the hair, where I quickly realized that I was in possession of a bare neck. Meaning I knew I was in Zoe’s body before I even noticed the rims of his glasses bordering my field of vision.
I looked at Maxxie, preparing to confront her, but I quickly noticed she was pointing the Vile Doohickey at herself, pressing Go right as I turned to her. Nothing changed on my end, implying two outcomes. Maxxie had either swapped herself with Shiaka’s body, or my original body while it was occupied by Zoe, leaving Maxxie in my body, Zoe in Maxxie, with Shiaka not experiencing the ‘fun’. That did not sound plausible in my head, so I instead assumed that Maxxie kept the sexes separated for this sequence of switched… I like alliteration, okay? Not that my findings meant much, as all was revealed shortly after I felt a hard slap hit my temporary back, with the only plausible source being Shiaka… or at least her body. I turned around to get a good look at her, only to see a cheshire grin staring back at me.
“Sorry if I got your freak on a li’l bit, but I thought this would be the neatest way to show Zoe and Shiaka our Doohickey.” Maxxie(S) said with a grin that looked abnormal on her borrowed face.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I blurted out, surprised by Zoe’s voice as it thrusted out of my lips.
“I just told ya, Imma showing our bestest buds your brand new toy, or do you only want to share with the birthday girl, ya meanie?” Maxxie(S) said in a manner that I would have immediately pegged as suspicious if I was not aware of who was in control of Shiaka’s body.
Speaking of our ‘buds’ I was then greeted by my own voice, sounding very stern and upset as Zoe was the one operating it from what I could gather.
“What the blazes is going on?” Zoe(J) said in a far less composed manner than usual, but given the circumstances I expected that much at the very least.
“Wh-Why am- What’s wrong with my voice?” Shiaka(M) said as she looked at her former body in dread, panting heavily and not hiding her fear in the slightest.
“Guys, I’m sorry about this, Maxxie, or- How to explain it…” I said, searching for the words to explain such an abnormal occurrence and sounding very much unlike Zoe despite having his voice.
“You see… Jad and I found a Doohickey remote thingie that could swap bodies. I think you dropped it when we got switched, Shiaka.” Maxxie(S) said as if this was an event that was merely abnormal.
Zoe(J), being very quick on his feet even during moments that would warrant quite a lot of panic, picked up the remote and began analyzing it while Shiaka was baffled to the point where she could barely speak.
“So, this… device did this to us? How did you ever possibly obtain something like this?” Zoe(J) said as he raised my body’s voice at me, which was a bit surreal even considering I heard Maxxie use it mere minutes ago.
“I found it at my doorstep, Zoe. I really didn’t even know what it was supposed to do, but Maxxie…” I nervously uttered, hoping that I could ease the tension in the room.
“Maxxie just was curious, ya poop! But seeing my face tear up is a major bummer that no B-day gal should have to see, so I guess I’ll undo this little switcheroo, if you wouldn’t mind Zoe Novus.” Maxxie(S) offered, showing her considerate side.
Zoe(J) proceeded to hand the device to Maxxie(S), and then return Zoe and I to our respective bodies before her and a Shiaka(M), who had entered a fetal position when she got her body back. The quick transition didn’t give me much of a chance to move about in Zoe’s body, but I’d be lying if I said I was curious to feel an undershirt against chest hair or move about in a stiff suit jacket. Instead, I was brought back to my familiar body draped in familiar clothes. What followed was certainly an awkward few minutes where we all thankfully kept our cool as we began talking about the Vile Doohickey, though Maxxie eventually did manage to drag us back to my room in order to “bump this birthday back on track”.
“I’m not exactly comfortable with all this, but I suppose I shouldn’t knock away such a rare experience. Still, I would appreciate a warning before having my body stolen.” Shiaka said softly, holding onto her arms as she sat on my bed.
“I agree, wholeheartedly as a matter of fact. That sudden outburst was harsh even by your standards, Maxxie. Please, try to be more careful with technology that could be incredibly sensitive for all you know.” Zoe said as he calmly stood against my wall, looking down at a Maxxie with puffed cheeks.
“I said I was sorry, I just was super excited and wanted a surprise. But seeing as how we shoved that water under our super bridge of friendship, I was hoping that my little techno-wizard could check out what makes this thingamabob do what it does. So whatcha think, Shiaka?” Maxxie said as she threw an arm over Shiaka’s shoulders.
“The machine does not have any clear points I could disassembled it from. I checked the back and found some AA batteries, but based on its thick and very consistent surface, I’m not sure how to get inside of it without the proper tools… Though I see no reason why it should not function. Even if its batteries do die, I always carry a few on my person… just as a precaution. So, um, if you do want to use it, I guess we could.” Shiaka said, likely going against her gut feeling of doubt towards the Vile Doohickey in order to make Maxxie smile.
“Still, we must acknowledge that we are dealing with something that, as far as I and the general public is aware, does not exist. As such, Maxxie, perhaps you would like to consider its use more carefully than I am assuming you did prior to our arrival. Do you understand?” Zoe questioned as he glared at the Vile Doohickey, likely pondering a plan for the device.
“Zoe’s got a point Maxxie, I thought it was interesting, but perhaps we should… maybe bring this device to the authorities or something.” I said as I saw the hope in Maxxie’s eyes crack quite a bit.
“So, you wish to simply dispose of something that could effectively change the world, giving it to a group who very easily could misuse it?” Zoe retorted, being the cynical one in out group.
“Then what do ya want us to do? Shove it in a drawer for a couple years?” Maxxie shouted, grabbing the Vile Doohickey as if she wanted to keep it out of the hands of Zoe and I.
“That would be even more of a waste, Maxxie. No, instead I believe that experimentation is rather important given such an innovative device. Just think about it, within five years we could achieve so much with this remote. We could effectively change the world if we play our cards right, our findings from regular use of this remote could prove to be revolutionary to this world. In other words, I believe we should use this device, find out all we can about it, and then, once we have everything the way we want it, introduce this revolutionary appliance to the world. Would you be content with that?” Zoe explained to Maxxie, Shiaka, and myself, causing a sense of doubt to grow between all three.
I was not opposed to the idea as much as I was afraid of where it would lead, pushing my life in a direction I would not have chosen, and potentially placing far more attention on myself than I ever desired. I wanted to tell Zoe that I didn’t really want to be involved in this, but seeing as how he would find a way to start this project, with or without us, I figured I would just stay quiet until the project came into fruition. That, and Maxxie’s response distracted me.
“So, can we celebrate my birthday by switching bodies around every hour or something?” Maxxie asked as she rubbed the back of her head.
“…I see no reason why not, as a matter of fact it is nearly 15:00 so perhaps we should figure out who should exchange bodies with who.” Zoe propositioned as he reached into one of his pockets, bringing out a notepad and pen.
We settled on an order rather quickly, meaning Maxxie stammered out her ideas and none of us had any comments. With the 15:00 to 16:00 swapping involving myself and Shiaka exchanging bodies while Zoe and Maxxie did the same, even though Zoe was a bit surprised by that prospect, but admitted he was curious. At 15:01 I was staring at a somewhat nervous Shiaka as Maxxie sent a jolt through both our bodies, eventually pressing the big red button to give us both a foggy feeling and new perspective on life.
Prior to the switch, I was more or less mapping out how I would adjust to the body before making sure Shiaka did not freak out when she was in my shoes… metaphorically as everybody took those off when they walked in. I am honestly surprised by anybody who thinks it is in any way acceptable to walk around one’s house in dirty shoes. I get it if they are movers or repairmen, but when you are visiting a friends’ house…
Point is, I began doing a basic top down search, starting by feeling the flowing hair I had, move about the face I had been given, move my arms a bit, wiggle my fingers, and try moving around the legs I had been traded for the remaining hour. Shiaka’s clothes were loose on her frame, and as such did not provide a lot of warmth, but I’d guess that Maxxie probably did not ask for Shiaka’s measurements when ordering the uniform… That, and I’m still not sure where the blazes she got that from, as it certainly felt similar to the uniforms for my school. Though, based on the skirt length being lacking to the point where I felt as if I would accidentally flash Shiaka’s panty, I’d guess it was not the real deal by any means.
As for describing what it felt like to more or less be Shiaka, I’d naturally say it was a lot like when I was residing in Maxxie’s body, what with the proportions and whatnot, but I felt smaller as a whole, a bit weaker, though I’d say the cold was only supporting that feeling. It was ultimately comfortable, but her timid demeanour certainly made a lot more sense to me after only a few seconds. As I began to test out my borrowed voice, I turned to Shiaka(J), who was very quietly looking over my body, patting her hands about my jacket, feeling up my face, and panting like a dog after it ran around the block on a hot summer day. Concerned, I headed straight for her, ignoring the shouts made by Maxxie(Z) using her new voice.
“Um, hey, Shiaka… are you alright?” I asked my partner in body swapping, realizing how weird it would be to have her own voice ask her such a question a little after it left my lips.
“I- I am… you, Jad. This is… really, really, really weird.” Shiaka(J) murmured in my voice, expressing her concern over the current situation very clearly.
“Look, I know that this can be shocking, I was freaked out myself, but there is nothing to worry about, you’re safe, we’re all safe.” I said as I placed my hand on her shoulder, trying to give her reassurance, when I likely just added another layer to the weirdness factor of this event.
Not that I was the only once creating a more colorful situation, as I couldn’t help but overhear the antics between Zoe(M) and Maxxie(Z). Maxxie had placed a hand down her new pants, and was likely feeling up Zoe’s penis. I say likely, but what I hear was Maxxie(Z) shouting, “Yo, Zoe! You’re penis is pretty damn fine!” I was afraid she’d whip it out. Thankfully Zoe(M) stopped her, telling her to “Be courteous of my privacy at the very least!” It was truly odd hearing the conversation, but it thankfully made Shiaka put a smile on what was my face minutes ago.
“So… what do we do now?” Shiaka(J) meekly asked the three of us.
“Well, we can always do what Jad and I did. Y’know, a little rub-rub.” Maxxie(Z) coyly added, continuing to sound odd given Zoe’s usual tone.
I was on the verge of objecting towards the idea, but Zoe(M) replied before I could. “I suppose I am interested in seeing the difference between male and female orgasms- my apologizes, I should have said feel the difference. However, I would not demand that we all must participate.” Zoe looked at a still uncomfortable Shiaka who was likely a bit intimidated the body part that was hardening in her pants.
This actually raised a question in my mind in regards to sexual orientation and this body swapping device. I would be lying if I said I did not feel as if there was something pushing me while… using Maxxie’s body to masturbate. Something beyond my own feeling as if I owed it to a good friend, something that got a bit caught up with the circumstances when things got rolling. At the time I began to think that while my demisexuality may follow me in my mind, it is merely the primary sexuality when in somebody else’s body. Being in the body of Shiaka, who is heterosexual, I began to ponder the events of forty or so minutes ago, and as a whole felt less captivated by them than I ever had, which would support the theory that spurred into my mind as I pondered Shiaka(J)’s erection. Not that I had much time for analysis, as I felt I had to talk to the girl occupying my body about masturbation.
“It’s really your decision, Shiaka. I don’t really have a particular desire to… masturbate in your body, but if you want to…” I explained, trying to reassure her once more.
“I… am curious and… can I talk to you outside for a moment?” Shiaka(J) asked, awkwardly looking down at her former face.
I naturally abided to her request, and we went down into my lavishly decorated living room, where we sat down, and she whispered something in my ears. “Jad, I… I’ve always found you attractive, and… I really want to do this.” Shiaka(J) then began awkwardly shoving a pillow over her erection, which just seemed to make it worse… or better depending on your point of view.
To tell you the truth, I noticed a few signs of our friendship being very close, but part of me assumed it was just how she latched onto people after she had nothing upon moving to a new town, and having few friends back when she was young. However, as the words exited from the lips I’d had for the great majority of my life, the reality quickly formed in my head and I very quickly adapted to what could be perceived as a major relationship changer. One question remained in my head after this, and I quickly blurted it out.
“Would you want me to masturbate in your body?” I asked, my face likely being almost comically crimson.
Shiaka grinned a bit before letting out her reply. “I guess it wouldn’t hurt.” A chuckle soon followed from both her and myself, as the air in the room was so thick that you could slice it with a knife. After a few minutes of immense awkwardness, something that thankfully came into the room as I spied Zoe(M) walking down the stairs.
“And what exactly did you two need to talk about away from Maxxie and I?” Zoe(M) asked, trying to not sound sarcastic or sadistic, but he did… at least in my opinion.
“We wanted to talk about what I assume you are about to do, Zoe.” I said, sounding far more snarky than I expected, warranting a puzzled look from Shiaka(J).
“Jad, Shiaka, you both realize there is little you need to keep to yourself if we are to use this amazing device to its full potential. Plus, our relationship has, in my honest opinion, reached a point where I find everything is open game. Or do you disagree?” Zoe(M) stated, continuing to use Maxxie’s normally exaggerated voice to speak very calmly.
Shiaka(J) nodded along with me, only to then pat her legs and stare at the two of us intently, gulping before she spoke. “I- um, I wanted to talk to Jad about me being in his body as I… always found him attractive… and I guess I should say I always thought you were too… I don’t mean for that to sound…” Shiaka was cut off by a loud snicker from Zoe(M).
“To be quite honest, I was aware of that for some time. The manner you looked at me was quite transparent, and I assumed you kept quiet in order to maintain our relationship as friends, correct?” Zoe(M) questioned an intimidated Shiaka.
“I… guess. I just didn’t want it to come across… wrongly. I’m sorry if that’s a problem.” Shiaka(J) murmured as she shoved her hands inside of the sleeves of the jacket she was wearing.
“Shiaka, we’ve been friends for almost five years. You don’t need to worry about that kind of stuff. There’s nothing wrong with being honest.” I said, continuing my moral support.
“If that’s the case… could you please let me try and fix your hair? It feels like there’s a bird’s nest on my head… er, your head- you know what I mean.” Shiaka explained as I let out a laugh, anticipating how this night would go, having nothing but faith that tonight would become the most memorable of my life… which it was.
Though I’m guessing that the most memorable does not mean best, right Jad?
Verde, the thing about that is how, well… I don’t want to jump ahead to anything, but you know how we are four high schoolers who are home alone? That changes after a few hours, and things get… even weirder. I mean, it was weird being in by best friends’ bodies, but I could have not predicted what happened.
I actually do know that there is quite a bit to tell before that, so perhaps we should tell what happened between 15:10 and whenever things changed.
I’ll get right on that, but I’ll leave out a few details for the sake of not listing every little action.
I see no problem with being punctual, so please do continue.
Chapter 05: Friendly Fapping
Well, if I’m going to summarize the events that transpired, as opposed to listing them out, I suppose I should start with what I did in the bathroom after ten minutes passed for Maxxie(Z) and Zoe(M). I was in the downstairs bathroom, which was far smaller than the one I… ah screw it, the bathroom I masturbated in beforehand. And if I must truly compare the experiences together, I would say that Shiaka’s was not as… pleasing as Maxxie’s was. I’m not sure what exactly it was, but something about it felt a lot less comfortable, which is saying something when you consider how awkward the experience was for me last time. Thinking back on it, I guess the main difference is that I managed to get into… masturbating Maxxie’s body more than I did Shiaka’s comparatively dainty body.
I may have just been a bit cold during the whole experience, I was not as attached to Shiaka as I was to Maxxie, there’s a lot that could have changed the experience, and I do not know what it really was, okay. I will say that clean-up went better, as I managed to use water to clean out Shiaka’s- my… crotch, instead of using a towel… which I genuinely forgot about.
…Don’t give me that look- alright, fine! While it is true that the four of us did end up having a conversation about our experiences… ejaculating in each other’s bodies, we pretty quickly realized just what we were talking about, and became very embarrassed. All the progress we made was that it was a somewhat frightening experience, and ended up feeling pretty good. The conversation ended at about 15:30, when the idea of testing our hand-eye-coordination was brought up. To test this we all pulled out our 3DSes, and play a bit of the, admittedly lacking Super Smash Brothers game released for it a month and a half beforehand. All of us were very much thrown off by having a new set of hands move about a familiar device, but the overall rankings after a few matches were in-line with what they normally were. Shiaka(J) on top, me in second place, Zoe(M) close in third, with Maxxie(Z) being dead last. Maxxie did always surprise me with her lack of skill though, not because she was bad at games, but by how little she cared for anything but fun when playing games, as opposed to Shiaka, who was emphasizing quite a bit of strategy from what I could pick up in the chaotic, and difficult to see, match.
Before long, Maxxie’s phone began playing the theme from the forgettable mid-90s anime, K.O. Beast, Rock and Roll Bomber. This was her way of signifying that bodies had to be rotated once more as the clock had hit 16:00. Maxxie had decided to keep the sex of everybody’s bodies the same, meaning I was back in Maxxie’s body, Zoe was in Shiaka’s, Shiaka was in Zoe’s, and Maxxie returned to my body for an hour.
This really gave me a good chance to compare the bodies of Shiaka and Maxxie, which occupied my mind as Maxxie(J) was being her usual self in my body, toying with Zoe(S) and Shiaka(Z) who were both rather quickly getting comfortable as each other. I would say Maxxie’s body felt very warm and soft, filled with energy and possessing a layer of comfort in her motions that was unsurprising considering how she was rather frantic whenever physical activity was requested. Returning to it felt like waking up energized and ready to take on the world. Shiaka, however, felt less energized than my original body did. That could be from a variety of things ranging to sleep, her rather dainty physical form that did not hit the one-hundred pound mark, or how she was lacking in regards to much that could be considered strength. Instead, it appears that she placed her points into dexterity, as I felt surprisingly confident with making smaller motions. From typing to playing games, I felt almost felt more control than I did when in my own body.
I actually had a somewhat sexist conversation about the very thing with Zoe(S), who agreed for the most part but, being part of the majority of the human race in regards to his sexual preferences, he did get more of a thrill out of the more feminine aspects of his friends’ bodies. Comparing the breasts and butts of the two, which ultimately favored Maxxie’s rear, while he claimed to be ‘interested’ by Shiaka’s breasts. Though it was not before long that the female to male half of our group came to talk about us in a similar manner..
I was apparently the far more feminine one, which I was not opposed to. I had taken a little something something to prevent bodily hair from growing, and shaved what was there fairly regularly. I tried to keep my waistline slim, and despite my gym class, I still didn’t have much muscle, especially compared to Zoe, who the two did not like much in regards of wearing the suit, but both admitted to flexing a bit when they got him naked. I’d seen Zoe when we went swimming in Maxxie’s pool, and I instantly understood. He was not necessarily hairless, but his very athletic body was something I certainly would call attractive. Extra strength naturally came with his fit form, and, unsurprisingly, he apparently had a bigger penis than me. I really did not care though, it’s not like I took advantage of anything its length could do after all. Hell, I don’t even pee while standing up.
It was another gloriously awkward conversation, but as it was boiling down, Maxxie(J) had immediately thought of an idea for our next activity. She promptly dug into the backpack she brought with her and pulled out a pair of tiny microphones along with a little plastic box with an HDMI cable sticking out of it. I immediately recalled the last birthday party she had, make that the last three, where she requested we all do a bit of Karaoke. I suppose it made sense, as we were all given different voices than what we were accustomed to, and our pitches and tones would make this a bit more humorous, I guess.
I sighed heavily and reluctantly agreed to do at least one song with her. She ended up selecting Opposites Attract by Paula Abdul and The Wild Pair. A song I enjoyed, but could immediately see flashes of what would happen if I even attempted it while in Maxxie’s body, and they were not pretty. I was grateful that she brought forth quite a lot of energy while in my body, which partially inspired me, in a weird sense, to try and ignore the discomfort I was feeling. The end result was actually far better than I expected, though based on how off pitch both of us were, I would not call it good.
Though that was only the opening act, as it were, with Maxxie(J) assigning everybody songs. Zoe(S) performed a surprisingly competent rendition of Not Your Kind of People by Garbage, capturing the somber tones well while motioning his borrowed body appropriately. Shiaka(Z) fumbled quite a bit with her selected song, Tell Her About It by Billy Joel, but did recover near the end, and managed to get into it enough to surprise Maxxie(J). The two were then requested to perform the intro theme to Nichijou, Hyadain no Kataomoi, dubbed in English, and effectively made Maxxie and I look like we were the lesser two of the group by capturing the character dynamics in the song rather well.
Oh, but it could not end with a weirdly offbeat 90 second song, as I was thrown Snake Eater by Norihiko Hibino, a song I listened to at least once a month for… over five years, and managed to capture far better than I had any right to. Though the next song went to Maxxie(J), who surprised us all by selecting The Ballad of Chasey Lain by The Bloodhound Gang… a song about a man who believes he deserves to eat out the butt of a porn star. Maxxie did involve me in the song, directly looking at me while singing and even pulling me up with her so she could lift up the sweater I was wearing to show the bra I had on while shouting “Show ‘em them titties.”
I can get how one could view this as a bit… mean to do to another, but we did all have something of a laugh as this happened. I mean, even Shiaka had to see Maxxie’s naked body at least five times in the three years they’ve known each other. Though, Maxxie was not ready to end things with that, as she requested, well, demanded that we all sing one last song. It was What I Got by Sublime, which followed the trend that had more or less been encompassing the entire night, and experience that began incredibly awkwardly, but by the end of it, all of us were yucking it up while in each other’s bodies.
Though by the time we wrapped up, the familiar tune of Rock and Roll Bomber came from Maxxie(J)’s pocket, and we executed the same sex-swap. I was once more In Zoe’s body, while he was in mine, while Shiaka and Maxxie had their own switcheroo. I had barely moved while I was previously in his body, standing and not really letting the differences between his and my own body settle, and that appeared to be the same for the four of us, as we all were met by a sense of something familiar, but very much different at the same time.
I almost immediately properly understood the criticism Maxxie and Shiaka brought up, as the clothes certainly looked better than they felt, while the addition of glasses was fine, seeing as how Zoe’s eyes were complete garbage without them. As for moving the body about, everything came easily, not as quickly as it did with Maxxie, but I felt a sense of strength I never had before, while a sense of masculinity was very much apparent even before I spoke in a notably deeper voice.
After we all got situated, and more or less agreed that we all felt similarly about each other’s bodies, the time was about 17:15, and a few of us were taking note about our bodies hunger, namely Shiaka(M) and Maxxie(S). Zoe(J) immediately requested that we simply order some food, and use it as an opportunity to experiment with the differences we all had when it came to our sense of taste. Hearing him request it with my voice, however, did make me feel like something of a simpleton based on how elegantly he put it. Maxxie(S) viewed it as her decision, however, and decided that it would be more fun for each of us to make something in my kitchen, and make sure everybody tastes everything with everybody else’s mouth.
The three of us were a bit paranoid about that idea, mostly in regards to preparing four dishes at the same time in a kitchen that really was not as big enough to fit more than two people. I briefly talked it over with Shiaka(M) and Zoe(J), who both thought it would be interesting as a concept, and felt they should be nice to the birthday girl. As such, we began selecting our dishes based on a fairly limited set of supplies, which sparked a bit of confusion in all of us.
I quickly recalled the reason my mom had been gone for what was five hours at the time was supposedly for groceries, which normally took one hour, maybe two if she wanted to do some small errands.
“Hey, guys. Sorry for forgetting, even though today’s been the oddest in my life, but I just realized my mom should’ve been home about three hours ago.” I nervously explained to the three searching through my kitchen.
“…I should have noticed the absence of your parents. How could I ignore such an obvious detail?” Zoe(J) shouted in frustration, more at himself than any of us.
“Don’t blame yourself, Z-Man! We all space out on big details like that. ‘Specially when having the raddest afternoon ever!” Maxxie(S) said as she placed an arm over Zoe’s shoulder.
“Maxxie, he does have a point. We really shouldn’t be so lax when using something so… secretive.” Shiaka(M) pointed out as she began reorganizing the kitchen we had began taking apart.
“I agree with them Maxxie. We really should get back in our own bodies, at least for now. I’m guessing my mom will be home soon, so if you want to still have some fun we could go over to your house. Or we could go out to Doodlers, whatever you want without… risking having our little secret be found out, okay?” I said as I saw Maxxie’s lips curl up and have her whimper… for a few seconds anyhow.
“Fine, I guess you’re right! I’ll just get the little wonder I… Now, where did I put it… Ah, in your room Jad, I musta left it there when I was checking out Shiaka’s vag. Uno momento!” Maxxie(S) uttered as she went back to her usual upbeat self.
“Wait, she checked out… right. Sorry, I forget sometimes.” Shiaka(M) nervously remarked as she likely realized why a pansexual would do something like that.
“And you wouldn’t happen to be feeling anything related to Maxxie’s libido, would you Shiaka?” Zoe(J) questioned, likely wanting to gather more information on how the whole sexuality thing works.
“Um, I don’t believe there are enough examples to test that, Zoe. It’s not like she’d find her own body to be attractive now… or do you Shiaka?” I said, wanting to stick up for Shiaka(M), but likely making things a bit more awkward for her.
Before she could answer, however, I heard a common sound come from behind me, not the sound of somebody running down the stairs, but of the front door opening. I muttered under my breath for it to not be either my mother or my father, though I knew they were the only two options, as nobody else had keys to this house. I quickly turned my head to observe the figure entering from the cold night outside, revealing a familiar long coat. I felt my heart skip a beat as I hoped that Maxxie would think of some way to quickly switch us all back before my mother greeted us, but no such salvation came.
Instead, the three of us all looked at one another, all placed in unfamiliar bodies, with Shiaka(M) bailing out on Zoe(J) and I by retreating to the bathroom out of fear. I quickly looked at Zoe(J), who looked down at the body he resided in, my body, nodded at me, and did his best imitation of me while I stood back, paralyzed as the prospect of failure stuck in my mind far harder than it had any right to.
Before that, I probably should describe my mother, Caroline Novus. She was in 34, and certainly looked good for her age. Had a head of flowing blonde hair, striking blue eyes, and a figure that she kept maintained, although she pretty much had to. She certainly had finer features, and could be mistaken for somebody in their late twenties, which made many an eyebrow be raised when she claimed to be my mother as most people assumed the age difference between us was about ten years.
Her attire was pretty distinctly feminine, as she was sporting a very nature themed green and brown dress that I honestly thought looked a bit garish, but I generally do not like the idea of wearing a design that could be in any way complex. It honestly looked pretty impractical to me given the temperature outside, as it did not look very thick, and nothing was covering her legs. The mix of small hoop earrings and makeup that coated her face did certainly make her look more feminine, I guess, than the two female bodies I resided in over the past two hours. There was certainly a good reason for her appearance, one centering around her husband’s demands of her, but I feel as if I should move back to the story itself. Wherein I was looking at a normal interaction I had every day, but from the third person perspective. That is, until my mother called out the name Zoe, causing me to flinch before clearing my throat.
“Good evening Mrs. Novus. I don’t believe we were expecting you.” I said, sounding like Zoe, but botching up beyond the simple greeting.
“I was out for quite some time, sorry dear, but I should probably get dinner started.” My mother said to Zoe(J) in a voice that had a sense of… deadness to it.
“Um, mom, weren’t you supposed to get groceries?” Zoe(J) keenly questioned, imitating me well.
“Oh, shoot! I forgot! I should… I shouldn’t, actually. I should start today.” My mother droned out as she looked into space, leaving both Zoe(J) and I confused.
“What are you talking about, m-Mrs. Novus?” I asked, nearly calling using the word ‘mom’.
“I’m sorry Jad, I… lied to you. I wasn’t doing errands, I was out meeting with a friend. Do you remember meeting a woman, same age as me, tall, dark complexion, short black hair?” My mother asked Zoe(J), when even I didn’t remember the woman she was talking about.
Zoe(J) briefly looked back at me, spying the confusion I wore on what was his face, and responded accordingly. “No, I don’t…”
“Well, her name is Raiyne, and she… is a childhood friend of mine who helped me with several things that have been troubling me for a while now. Namely things involving your father. You’re smart, so I’ve sure you noticed how her treats me, treats you to a lesser degree. He would be furious if he even knew I met with Raiyne, and… I need to stand up to him. I’ve been his doormat for most of my life and… I can’t take it anymore.” My mother explained to Zoe(J), who expressed discomfort as he looked back at me, which was a sign that things were going pretty badly.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t involve your friends in this, and I should be the one to solve this problem, so if you could go over to Maxxie’s house or-” My mother solemnly said before being interrupted by… well, it looked to be nothing.
I said looked to be nothing, when I soon experienced the familiar sensation I felt… seven times before. The shiver of the Vile Doohickey that led to a foggy feeling as I resided in another’s body. I assumed that Maxxie(S) simply finally got the remote and began switching us back, but I feared what she actually did as I began looking from this newly obtained body’s eyes. I was staring back at my original body, with Zoe’s body residing in my field of vision. The sensation of hair brushing the middle of my back instilled a sense of dread within me, and the fact the body didn’t feel familiar only made me more certain that a misfire had occurred. As I looked down to see a pair of manicured hands, with a familiar floral pattern on the sleeves, I knew that I was placed in my own mother’s body.
Do I even need to explain what is wrong with this situation? Not only was our secret found out, it was done at an incredibly awkward time, and caused me to be placed inside of the body that gave birth to me. Just the thought alone caused a certain level of disgust, as I wanted nothing more than to turn the clock back fifteen seconds and prevent this switch from happening. I let out a sour groan as I saw my mother react to being placed in Zoe’s body before muttering a simple “fuck” in a disgruntled and unmistakable voice.
However, I want to stop right now to ask you a couple questions Verde.
Ah, about Caroline Novus, correct?
Yes, about my mother, who I… Okay, why the hell do I view her as my mother, but know that she is not?
You could word that a bit better, could you not Jad?
Okay, when I was in this… experiment of yours, I did not remember meeting you, or the previous experiment, at all. But, you also change more things with my memory, didn’t you?
Yes, yes I did Jad. Let me introduce some terminology to simplify the explanation. The world you knew, the one you lived in before I came into your life, is what I call the Prime State. However, for the sake of this experiment, the world you were in when experiencing these events was not the Prime State, rather it was an Alternate State. A world that is different from the one you know in an infinite number of ways. In it I will admit to changing both your father and mother, changing them, and, for the sake of the experiment, giving you memories about your life with them. You were in short transported into a world where your parents were different, but your friends remained the same. Your parents are the same people, but their lives deviated from how you know them, and who exactly they are transformed with those changes. Do you understand?
…Why the hell did you do this? I mean, if the experiment was meant to be about what I would do with a body swapping remote, then why would you need to…
I wished to complicate matters further, add in a bit of conflict involving the Vile Doohickey, and as such, observe more.
So, you basically made my life a lot worse for the sake of conflict?
I understand your frustrations, but it was something of a challenge I put in place for you, and I must say you did better than I had anticipated.
…You better give me some answers at the end of all this.
I will answer whatever questions you have about me, or what you underwent, Jad. However, I would appreciate it if we conclude this session before hand. However, if you do happen to be in need of a break, I have no problem waiting until you are ready.
I’m ready now…
Chapter 06: Righteous Revengeance
After I expressed my dissatisfaction with being placed in my mother’s body and of the spilling our metaphorical beans, I spied the pair of Maxxie and Shiaka, or at least their bodies walking from an area just outside of my field of vision. It was near the stairs, and in a small den area that acted as a storage room more than anything. Shiaka’s body looked at me with concern while Maxxie’s was grinning while holding the Vile Doohickey. I assumed that both of them were back in their original bodies based on this and scowled at Maxxie as she dragged her feet into the entranceway that connected to the kitchen.
I then looked forward to see a baffled looking Zoe, patting himself furiously while panting up a storm. I assumed my mother had been placed inside of that body, and apparently Zoe, in my body came to the same conclusion. I then took a deep breath, feeling the air flow through my mother’s body.
“Maxxie, switch us back. All of us.” I said sternly with Maxxie complying rather quickly, as the shiver was sent down my spine, and I experienced the fogginess once more.
A quick glance was enough for me to realize that I had been returned to my own body, where I saw Maxxie press the Go button once more, causing a reaction in both Zoe and my mother’s body. I quickly moved my own body around, getting comfortable as I realized that the five of us were going to have a very… abnormal conversation.
“Wh-What’s going on?” My mother shakily let out as she looked over herself in confusion.
“It’s a long story… Well, not really, just an odd one.” I said, looking at the three others who could help me tell this story.
I explained to my mother how Maxxie and I encountered the Vile Doohickey, how we switched bodies, how Zoe and Shiaka got involved, and that we spent the past few hours ‘experimenting’ the Vile Doohickey. I did omit the bits about Zoe’s plan to make use of the device, and how we all masturbated in one another’s bodies, but we managed to cover those holes pretty well all things considered.
“I was gonna go back and switch us all back right before you came home, Caroline. But I wasn’t fast enough and you arrived right after I got the remote. So I snuck around behind ya, found Shiaka in my body in the backroom, did the switcheroo with us two, and aimed to make everything right… but then I screwed the poochie-woochie and now all of our beans have fallen onto the ground and are dirtified!” Maxxie explained, telling all of us the backstory to how she managed to switch us, but Caroline still, naturally, had questions.
“Then… how did you switch Zoe and I… or Jad and I, I suppose would be…” My mother mumbled as she was trying to absorb all of the information we were throwing her way.
“The device selects its first and second target by pointing the front end at an individual. Based on the positioning of yourself and myself in Jad’s body, I can see how Maxxie would have misfired.” Zoe dryly let out, clearly pondering the next course of action we should take.
“What were you all planning to do with this… remote?” My mother questioned, putting me in a corner I did not enjoy occupying by any means.
“I… Well, we wanted to see what we really, in the big picture, could do with the device, once we have the ability to do it, which would take a while and…” I explained while receiving an angry stare from Zoe, one concerned from Shiaka, and a… normal one from Maxxie.
“Perhaps… you would likely need money to do this, right?” My mother asked, as if there was much people could do in the world without money.
“Seeing as how half of us are from very well off families, I do not see much of an issue with obtaining funds, but I’m assuming you have another angle in mind.” Zoe responded coyly to my mother.
“I… I’m sorry, I got distracted, but… I want to get rid of Bryce… I’m sorry, that sounded wrong, but I- No, I do want to get rid of him. I had planned on divorcing him but… This opens up a new opportunity.” My mother let out, inspiring several raised eyebrows.
“What do you mean, Miss Novus?” Shiaka asked for all four of us.
“In short… I- No, before saying what I want, I should explain to you why I want it. Jad, I’ve told you bits and pieces, and I’m sure you filled in the gaps, but I should really be direct with you all and tell you my, well, my life’s story I suppose.” My mother said, guiding us into the living room so we could all take a seat.
It was here where I feel I should simply recap what she was saying, as she was not very punctual with her hour long speech… But before I dive into that, I want to make something very, very clear. This man, this Bryce Novus that you created, he is not my father. I can certainly see how he is based on my father who, I admittedly have issues with, but whereas I can look at my mother in this alternate universe you dropped me in and see her as the same person, this man is not my father- Wait, that’s why you gave them different names, isn’t it… Well, I feel dumb right now.
Right, backstory for my parents. Back in June of 1995, when my fifteen year old mother was Caroline Steticks, she met an older man, one twenty years old by the name of Bryce Novus. She explained it was inconsequential at first, but he managed to escalate their meeting at ‘some store’ into a date that my mother found to be ‘completely magical’. They continued seeing each other about every other day, then every day… then, before she knew it, she was no longer even going to highschool, and she was living with Bryce before the first snowfall of the season. It was almost nineteen years ago exactly when my mother received an engagement ring from Bryce, where they planned to have their wedding right after her sixteenth birthday in January. My mother’s parents, my grandparents, were hesitant about letting this go through, but after my mother attempted suicide after they, they reluctantly agreed… Which was actually how it happened outside of this Alternate State of yours.
Their wedding was largely unattended, but my mother was too infatuated with Bryce to really care. She simply wanted to be with the kind, caring, manly man who would lavish her with gifts, including that of me, on their wedding night. Which is a bit unpleasant, and once more, things are lining up to what I heard back before I got involved in this experiment. After their wedding, Bryce bought a house for the two of them. Using what money, you may ask? Well, my mother was unsure as well. You see, Bryce was actually in charge of a large variety of illegal activities. Illegal drugs, prostitution, theft, and he apparently killed more than a few people. My mother continued to explain how amazed she was that he was never arrested for any of it, always having somebody else take the fall, or commit ‘suicide’. This, right here, is where things go way off the rails.
Things like this continued in this Alternate State as the marriage got gradually worse, according to my mother, as she was being admired less and treated more like she was Bryce’s servant rather than wife. Things did, however, end, as Bryce left the metaphorical game in late 2005, where he managed to get his hands on several million dollars. He began cutting most ties he made over the years when my mother finally discovered just what the hell Bryce was really up to. In her words, she was “furious, outraged, fucking pissed, and disgusted” with Bryce. She lashed out at him one night, threatening to bring him to the authorities, when the night ended with Bryce throwing her down the stairs, telling her that if she ever told anybody about what happened, he would make sure that she was killed. Even if it was the last thing he ever accomplished and so forth.
Bryce also made sure to tell his wife of nearly a decade that “all you ever were was a tool. Not a fucking person or any of that shit. I fuck you, you make me food, and you clean up my shit. I don’t care about you, never fucking did, I just used you as a cover because you were pretty, and fucking stupid. It took you ten years to figure this out, pfft, if that ain’t pathetic, I don’t know what the fuck is.” My mother mentioned that he spit on her afterwards, and then had her call 911 while he went ‘out’.
To make this whole alternate universe thing more confusing, I actually remembered a version of this happening, still contained in this Alternate State mind you. Though it was of the aftermath, as I had apparently been sleeping over at Maxxie’s house. My mother was beaten and reduced to a shell of her former self. She still smiled at me, but I could tell that something bad happened to her. I wanted to help her, but she kept telling me that everything was fine, and that she simply fell down the stairs. And during this, Bryce just stayed away from the two of us, not giving a single shit about either of us, and probably not in a very long time.
I probably should say that, while those memories upset me, they are more akin to the dream I had about Silicon Valley. A Place I know nothing about, but despise simply because that is the name of a location I dreamed about, and just about every aspect of the place got on my nerves. Plumbing and water were scarce, electricity was exclusive to a few buildings, and everybody still managed to be akin to hipsters without smartphones, but instead shoving books they either read or wrote in my face. It also somehow smelled pretentious, though I’m not even sure how that’s possible.
Where was I… Right, after hearing the backstory of my Alternate State exclusive father, I looked back at my three friends’ reaction to this discovery, namely what the hell I should do, as I, believing the details specific to the Alternate State of the world to be real, was quite a bit shaken up.
“Kill that fucker!” Maxxie shouted, having tossed away her cheery demeanor sometime while hearing the story.
“S-Shouldn’t we call the police? I doubt that Bryce could hurt us if they are protecting us. I’m sure there’s some evidence they could find. There’s no way they got everything.” Shiaka shakily said, upset after hearing the story and certainly more than a bit nervous.
“No, not yet anyhow. We should not assume that we can find evidence to our claims. Instead, we should… create our own.” Zoe pondered, looking at the Vile Doohickey.
“I actually should say that you- you aren’t the only ones I told. Well, you do know all the details and they don’t…” My mother mentioned, brushing tears out of her eyes.
“Was it Raiyne?” I asked, hoping to learn a bit more about the meeting the two had, as it must have sparked something inside of my mother.
“Yes, it was… she became a detective since I last saw her, she was in town and… I wanted her to help me with Bryce, help me… get rid of him. L-Legally of course, as I was sure she could find some evidence, but she said that I could handle the problem if I am aggressive enough…” My mother said, sounding confused as she recalled her friend’s words.
“Wait, so what did this Raiyne person say?” Maxxie said, asking a legitimate question.
“Her exact words were… let me think… ‘I know this may be hard for you, but you need to cease being passive around your husband. Search for any opportunity that comes your way, and hit him wherever you can reach. I’ll be sure to lend a hand with the legal side of things, but there’s only so much I can do with a full plate as it is.’” My mother recited, surprising all of us with how much detail she picked up on.
“Really, take any opportunity- no, perhaps we should heed her advice. I am not condoning the use of this technology for malicious purposes, but I doubt any of you would object to using it to imprison this man, no?” Zoe questioned, pausing as he began as if he had quickly discarded a thought.
“So then… what’s the plan?” I asked, slightly regretting my words.
“Um, I still think we should try the police, get them involved and-” Shiaka said before being interrupted.
“I know, we’ll frame him!” Maxxie exclaimed, holding the Vile Doohickey high in the air.
“Frame him?” My mother questioned Maxxie’s seemingly random outburst.
“We… tie up one of us, put them in Bryce’s body, leaving him inside of one of us, and have the guy in Bryce’s body beat Caroline!” Maxxie shouted, inspiring all of our eyes to widen.
“Maxxie… that may actually work.” Zoe claimed after a second of pondering.
“What?” Shiaka, my mother, and myself shouted in unison.
“I agree that such a plan may seem to be morally questionable, and undeniably dangerous, but it would be a simple way of pinning a crime on this man. We could potentially cover one of our mouths, eyes, and limbs to cause confusion within Bryce while the act of domestic violence is staged. One of us may call the police, and when they are near, we can return Bryce and the participant to their original bodies, where Bryce will be arrested. From there we, namely you Mrs. Novus, can bring up his past actions, and the police can investigate them as well, potentially removing him from your life for its entirety.” Zoe explained, sounding cool and collected as I assumed he was making this up on the fly.
“I’m not sure, can’t we just have one of us, in his body, confess to his previous crimes?” Shiaka asked, clearly not liking the sound of this plan.
“Nah, they’d prolly think he was just lying or something. Confessions don’t mean a lot when ya can’t remember making them.” Maxxie said while looking about the kitchen as if she was preparing the plan already.
“Um, don’t I get a say in this?” My mother questioned, as the plan involved her being beaten.
“We would require some evidence of domestic violence occurring, but I am sure a few prominent bruises would be enough. Actually, my apologies, the plan could be effective if any one of us are beaten, I simply made the mistake of choosing you after you regaled us of his previous instance of domestic violence.” Zoe answered in an apologetic manner.
“Actually, my mom didn’t really mention this, but she’s been hit pretty often… I think I told Maxxie a few times, but it never really came up when you guys were around. Sorry about that.” I said, feeling as if I failed by not letting all of my friends know how my father was beating my mother.
“If that is the case, perhaps it would be best to involve you, Mrs. Novus- I’m sorry, it just occurred to me that you may dislike being referred to by such a surname.” Zoe mentioned, sounding controlled even as he was apologizing.
“It… It’s fine. I… I suppose it would be for the best, unless any of you have other ideas… ones that don’t involve us hurting each other? Maybe we can just, I don’t know…” My mother uttered, expressing her hesitation.
“The only other plan I’ve got involves switching up Bryce and a squirrel or something. But that’s pretty goldarn evil when ya think it through.” Maxxie said before heading down to the basement with a thick napkin in her hand, likely looking for some rope or twine for the plan she spouted.
There was a general sense of agreement among us, but even Zoe did not seem too satisfied with the conclusion we reached, as if he was still thinking of another way. I was naturally going to need to be involved with another instance of a physical familial dispute, but the very idea of it being the final one made me more than a bit eager to give it a shot, even though Maxxie seemed to be a bit too into the idea. Personally, I think she just thinks the idea of binding somebody up is kinky, but it could really be anything.
As for Shiaka, however, she very much requested that she remain absent from the event, volunteering to pick us up some dinner as we prepared… even though she lacked a driver’s license and would need to walk, alone, in the cold winter night at 19:07. She seemed adamant about it though, and the walk to her destination was not that long, so we ended up letting her leave what was continuing to be the weirdest preemptive birthday party ever.
Huh.
Just a ‘huh’, huh?
Look, it’s nothing all that major, just that when I sent you on an adventure like this, I didn’t expect for there to be a staged crime. Didn’t seem that weird at first but the more I think about it… the more it does.
Well, when you give somebody powers greater than what a normal person possesses, how soon to you expect them to brush up against the borders of legality?
Fair enough. Plus, given how you were instilled with a degree of downright hatred for this man, I can certainly understand why you would wish to dispose of him. And just in case you happened to be curious, in this Alternate State, both Zoe and Maxxie have had less than pleasant interactions with Bryce Novus.
Yeah, I remember those events vaguely as of right now… and that actually does make you seem to be very… unsettling.
You mean my abilities to alter reality and minds is in some way intimidating? Surely you jest!
…I really hope that was just a bad attempt at sarcasm on your part.
I suppose it was. Regardless, I am more than willing to have a lengthy discussion with you about my abilities, but for now, I feel it is best we resume the reciting of events, if you don’t mind.
Okay… This is where things get pretty goldarn hairy, if I do say so myself.
Chapter 07: Beneficial Blunder
It was about 19:33 when Maxxie, Zoe, my mother, and I all heard the familiar sound of the front door opening, inspiring for us, excluding a bounded Zoe, to investigate. We were not expecting the absent Shiaka to return both so quickly and suddenly have a key to the front door. Instead, Maxxie was holding onto the Vile Doohickey, prepared to use it on Bryce Novus if he returned to the home he owned, and that man just so happened to open up the front door. He let out a grumble as my mother smiled at him while taking off his coat. Based on her facial reaction, I assume this was simply out of habit, much like how she hung the man’s coat, and asked him how his day was.
I peered from the top of the staircase to get a better look at him, the gears in my head turning as I began imagining how exactly this plan would work. He was a large man, certainly. About 90 kilograms and two meters tall, packing more than enough strength to beat the average person in a fight, but I wouldn’t say he looked visually appealing, at all. Arms drenched in deep brown hair, face that looked like it’d been hit by more than a few rocks over the years, a thick shadow of hair on his face for not shaving after a few days, and a balding head of hair above a forehead that looked like it was drenched in sweat. In fact, I could smell the bodily odor from his disgusting looking wife beater that had an assortment of bodily hairs poking out of it. Shifting my gaze downward, I saw the familiar jeans and belt he would often fling off upon returning home, and before sitting on a couch I refused to use. Though, I won’t judge him purely based on appearances, as his core was pretty much rotten.
“Yeah, yeah, where the fuck’s my dinner? I don’t smell shit.” Bryce grumbled in his gravelly voice, looking at my mother as if he was going to hit her if she did not have a good answer for him.
“Well, quite simply, I have decided that I am not doing this any longer.” My mother confidently let out after glancing over to see Maxxie and I.
“Sorry, thought you just said something retarded. The fuck were you trying to say?” Bryce said as he walked closer to my mother.
“I said, I am not going to be your slave any longer, Bryce. You have been tormenting me for years now, and I… I’m disgusted with myself for letting you continue for so long.” My mother explained , likely imaging being beaten once more as she paused.
“That’s what I thought… Caroline, I knew you were a dumb fuck since I met you, but now you’re begging to be pummeled. Look, say you’re sorry, and make my fucking dinner, and I may just let you be after a good fuck.” Bryce intimidatingly said as he placed his hands on my mother’s shoulders.
It was here when Maxxie and I wondered if we really needed to use the Vile Doohickey to switch Zoe, who was already… registered, I guess, by the device. As such, we waited to see where things went, as I assumed this was therapeutic for my mother to finally stand up to her tormenter.
“No. I will not. I will not spend another night under the same roof as you, and… in fact…” My mother calmly said as she removed Bryce’s sausage-links off of her shoulders.
My mother proceeded to take off her wedding ring as a result, a golden band with a prominent emerald. She handed it to Bryce, placing it in his hands for him. Things were silent for half a minute before Bryce reached for my mother’s earrings, and yanked them off, causing them to break and blood to come gushing out of her earlobes. Bryce then grabbed her by the neck and began carrying my mother to the kitchen. Maxxie and I heard a loud clank amongst the cries my mother was naturally letting out, as Bryce’s loud shouts roared through the house.
“Where. The fuck. Do you. Get off?” Bryce shouted between hitting his wife, causing Maxxie and I to dash towards the kitchen.
Unfortunately, Maxxie, who was holding the device we needed, happened to drop the device in her haste to register Bryce. We were both paralyzed at this event, fearing the circumstances, and forgetting how we could, you know, call the police at this very moment. I quickly went down to examine the remote, finding that its two AA batteries had fallen out, and rolled under a rather packed closet placed near the foot of the stairwell. I frantically opened it as Maxxie was asking me for advice, when I was in such a panic that I didn’t even register what she was saying. Instead, I fumbled throughout the closet, searching for the batteries as I heard glass shatter and Bryce scream.
My response to this was to fuck up as much as possible, dropping the batteries, shoving them in the wrong way before correcting my mistake, and then finally trying to hit Bryce, and press Go, but nothing happened. In my panic, I paused to realize how the remote likely reset itself after losing all power. I quickly aimed the remote at Bryce’s back, hitting button number 1. Not having looked at the scene for so much as a second, I then handed the remote over to Maxxie so she could execute the switch after she got Zoe with button number 2. I then ran into the noisy kitchen, shouting at Bryce to stop.
I then observed and registered what had happened in my panic. Bryce’s face has been scarred by a glass shattering against it, and he had several bite and nail marks along his hairy arms. There was a fork lodged in his shirt, and it looked like he recieved very minor bruises along other parts of his body. My mother, however, was screeching in pain, something I had apparently ignored as I was getting the Vile Doohickey ready, because her hand was embedded onto the counter with a knife.
From there, she had a beaten face with blood still dripping from her earlobes. Her other arm looked to be broken or dislocated, and her legs had been trampled on, as Bryce was still wearing his shoes. I could see minor cuts all over her body, with about twice as many bruises, and an eye that had already begun to swell profusely. It was without a question a very gruesome scene, one enhanced by a kitchen that looked ravaged,with cut curtains, utensils on the floor, drawers pulled out, shattered plates, it was a fine mess to say the last.
A mess that let me speechless, horrified as I took in the scene and felt a sense of failure for waiting to use the device, and then being the one responsible for the delay when it came to using it. I loathed myself for not rushing the moment they went into the kitchen. I despised how I did not have Maxxie look for the batteries while I lessened the violence. I felt nothing but regret for not having my phone out to call 911. And I simply hated myself for not stopping this years ago. I managed to stop the violence, but as what felt like an hour passed, without a peep from Maxxie, all I could muster up as a response was anger, rage, fury, that general group of emotions that I could not control before I launched myself at Bryce.
I had no plan, no strategy for dealing with a man who could easily beat me with one arm tied behind his back, but I aimed and slided at his legs, and was kicked away before I could sink my teeth into them, as I had ‘planned’. I was hit in the face, and sobbing in pain as a result. Bryce then grabbed me in my vulnerable state, and promptly jammed his fist into my gut, dropping me as I began vomiting as my tears kept coming.
“Look at him, can’t take a punch half as well as you. Whose fault is it? Yours, you useless bitch! Always smothering him, giving him a pussy name nobody ever fucking heard of. And every fucking time I tried to fix this mistake, you just whined and got rid of it. Y’know what, fuck it!” Bryce ranted to my mother before taking off his belt, momentarily whipping me with it, and then getting his pants off, preparing to rape my mother.
I tried shouting for him to stop, but I could barely speak. He would have ignored me anyhow. Thankfully, as his hands were gripping his boxers, I saw his shoulders joly upwards in a familiar fashion. My current positioning on the floor left me unable to see her, but I assumed that Maxxie had gotten Bryce with the Vile Doohickey. ‘Bryce’ then began looking over the scene, himself, and even glanced at me as I moaned. His face had an alien look of dread upon it all the while, and eventually contorted itself to speak in a seldom used tone.
“What the hell happened?” The person who has my father’s body said with fear, likely being Zoe.
From there, I smiled, hoping that our plan has worked, unable to really process the specifics before I heard the familiar voice of Maxxie, using a rarely heard tone from her.
“Y-You see, there’s been a- a fight, domestic violence I guess. I’m at my friend’s house, and his father- he beat his wife and- um, it’s at 2137 Onion Avenue. Their son is also hurt and… My name is Maxxie Flare… Yes, another friend, Zoe Xing, is here, and one went out for a bit- thank you… I’ll hide in the bathroom.” Maxxie muttered before hanging up.
“Well, I think we can recover… who am I kidding, this went real bad!” Maxxie said, returning to a more natural tone of voice.
“Maxxie, you go and use the device on Bryce in my body and I… I suppose I will just stay here while you prepare to switch the two of us back once the police arrive. Can you handle that?” Zoe said from my father’s body, showing his disgust and pain as he spoke.
“I got that, but what about-” Maxxie said, showing concern for both my mother and myself.
“Wait for the police *cough* I’ll be fine.” I blurted out, only to spit up a few more fluids.
“You really think I’m gonna leave my best bud like this?” Maxxie said as she began to grab me.
“Maxxie, please stop! The plan is in motion, and we don’t want there to be any suspicion about us meddling with a crime scene. Leave Jad be and wait for the sirens!” Zoe said with the commanding tones Bryce’s voice enabled.
Maxxie agreed, rushing back upstairs, when I heard my mother speak up after being beaten half to death.
“Why didn’t you help sooner, Jad?” My mother moaned before she let out a vicious cough.
“I… dropped the remote and… I’m sorry mom, I really am. This- *cough* This was a bad idea. But I think it will work. We’ll be patched up, and Bryce will be gone- *cought* but I… I am forever sorry for causing you pain- I… I’m not sure what I can say.” I let out while trying to better lean myself against the wall.
“We likely could have simply called the police if this were the case, but I take it that did not cross your’s and Maxxie’s minds, right?” Zoe said, using Bryce’s voice bizarrely while fiddling with his bloody hands.
“I… I fucked this up, I…” I began saying before Zoe interrupted me.
“Jad, we all agreed on this plan, and while an accident may have occurred, the person to blame here is the one who assaulted your mother, and who harmed you. While it is important to understand one’s past mistakes, there is no need to-” Zoe paused as he heard police sirens in the distance, as part of a far faster response than I anticipated.
From there, I heard Maxxie rush down the stairs, saw Zoe’s reaction to being selected by the remote, only to then see Bryce’s body react to its original owner returning. Maxxie quickly went upstairs after she saw the reaction she needed, likely to untie Zoe. As for my mother and I, we both likely possessed a good amount of fear as we heard Bryce shout once more.
“Gah! The fuck was that? How the- Ah shit, don’t tell me your fucking friends are over, you waste of cum!” Bryce erupted as he spied Maxxie, not necessarily questioning the possibility of a body swapping remote.
“Answer when I speak to you, bitch! Did one of your retarded friends rat me out, you- Oh, I get this now, yeah, I fucking get it. That the best you can do?” Bryce said as he grabbed me, connecting the cause and effect without revealing the secret device… And probably connecting them wrong things.
“Here’s the thing… What good was all this bullshit if I just fling you down the stairs, or slice your throat, or just twist your neck. Trust me when I say I’ll have no fucking problem with that! I’ll take you all out before you even have a fucking chance to-” Bryce threatened me before the he was distracted by the sound of the front door opening.
I was expecting for the door to be opened by force, but based on the actions of the individual, they simply opened up the door with a key. This individual was about as tall as Bryce, very lean, draped in a spotless white jacket covering a blue dress shirt, some slick looking white pants, and polished black dress shoes. Their face was covered by a flat-topped hat, white with a strip of cobalt fabric sewn along the rim. However,the most important detail was how they had a handgun pointed right at Bryce.
“I thought I was a bit paranoid for expecting things to get hairy tonight, but based on the turmoil you caused, I take it my intuition was right. Just another reason to trust it, I guess.” The figure said in a distinctly feminine voice, but one very cool, collected, and deeper than average.
Bryce then dropped me and held his hands up, spitting on me before walking up to the individual.
“My, mister Novus, you are awfully complacent with the crime you just committed, are you not?” The woman uttered as she still kept the gun pointed at Bryce.
“Look, I fucked up. I fucked up big time, so now I’m heading to the big house, right? Well shove your smarmy attitude up your ass and arrest me.” Bryce calmly, but cynically said to the woman.
Afterwards, she gestured outside to have a pair of police officers come in and handcuff Bryce, taking him outside as the woman began walking into the kitchen, while two other police officers began going through my home. It was here where I got a better look at her face. Dark complexion, black hair brushing from the rim of the hat, bizarre looking dark blue eyes, and a well kept figure that wore her attire tighter than I would have assumed looking at her from a distance. I would say she was in her late twenties just by looking at her, perhaps early thirties. She did not pay me much mind, however, and went towards my mother, who, while I was not paying attention, had removed the knife from her hand and crumbled onto the floor.
“Oh Caroline.” The woman said with sorrow as she looked over my mother.
“Hey Raiyne. I’m sorry things didn’t go that well… but you’ve got him, right?” My mother meekly let out as she was bracing her blood soaked hand.
“We’ll talk later. Just save your strength and tell them the truth, okay?” The mysterious woman who I just learned to be Raiyne said softly to her childhood friend.
Hate to butt in, but you seem a bit shaken up Jad, we can take a break if you want.
Well, I guess I am. But who can really blame me? It was a terrible incident that I remember more or less exactly.
We still have quite a bit of story left to go through- heck, you just introduced a new character.
Yeah… Um, can I take a bit of a break? I mean, I just want to collect my thoughts and figure out how I should tell the rest of this.
You are in a place where time is infinite, take as much as you like, and feel free to ask for whatever it is you desire.
No, I… I should be fine after a couple minutes to myself Verde, thanks.
Chapter 08: Crime Confrontation
I’ll turn the clock forward a bit, to 22:31 to be exact, as the fifteenth of November was nearing its conclusion, and I was in the Oransen police station. It was not particularly large, though I did not see much beyond an empty conference room that Detective Raiyne Underwood had requested I be taken too. Before arriving, it was a pretty hectic time back at my place, with questioning, an arrest, and Detective Underwood eventually deciding to have a police officer take me to the station so I could be properly questioned. Since then, I had been given a snack of a red bean bun and milk, while a police officer stands outside of the door to the conference room to make sure I don’t slip out.
Since entering the room, I had been attempting to repress my memories tonight’s events, and get back to my happy place. Even though I know that Bryce was not my father, when in this Alternate State I genuinely believed he was, and learning what I learned, and seeing what I saw would probably make anybody a bit shaken up at the very least. As such, I was drowning my sorrows through an episode of The Comedy Button on my mp3 player, which is both more and less appropriate than it sounds if you ever listened to the podcast.
My repressing would not last forever, as I eventually saw the door to this simple room open, revealing a familiar snazzy set of clothes and a face I last saw about an hour beforehand. Raiyne Underwood entered the conference room with a neutral expression on her face as she sat in the seat that was the furthest away from me. I plucked my earbuds out and took a breath, anticipating her first question.
“So Jad, your mother spoke very highly of you to me.” Raiyne began, as if she were trying to butter me up.
“Well, I’m pretty sure most mothers with kids who are average at best do the same, so it’s not all that surprising.” I claimed, trying to sound modest.
“Good grades, good friends, clean record aside from a minor incident here and there in your early childhood. It’s a bit surprising you flourished so well in such a troubled relationship.” Raiyne said as she placed her white and cobalt hat on the table, swishing her neck length hair about.
“I knew about it for a while, several years in fact, but my mom told me not to tell anybody… and I guess I never did… But I’m guessing you know all about that, right?” I calmly responded.
“Caroline did say quite a bit about her and Bryce’s past on length during our lunch. And she did tell me about when you saw her beaten by Bryce for the first time. Threw her down the stairs and had her say she simply fell down them. She was terrified of speaking about him to the world as a result, and I honestly don’t think she said a word about it to anybody until we met.” Raiyne explained very calmly.
“My mom said you wanted her to take the next opportunity to get back at Bryce, and, well, she decided that the next opportunity was when he came homes and… you know what happened there.” I said, realizing how open I made my claim after the words slipped out of my mouth.
“Actually, Jad, I would not say I know what happened as well as you did. So, if you wouldn’t mind telling me what occurred in your home after Bryce returned?” Raiyne requested, but it sounded more like an order… that I quickly obeyed.
“She greeted Bryce when he came home, and… she told him off. Said she would not live in fear from him, and be his servant in a loveless marriage she threatened to end. Bryce, well, he lost it-” I said before I was interrupted By Raiyne.
“I notice that you refer to your father by his given name, but not your mother. Care to explain why that is?” Raiyne asked, picking apart my recap before I was three sentences in.
“Um… quite simply, I don’t like him. I don’t view him as my father, and don’t call him one as a result.” I stated as Raiyne nodded.
“So, perhaps you wanted to see him be removed from your home as well, no?” Raiyne questioned me.
“I guess I did. I already said I didn’t like him, so no longer being around him, especially after hearing what my mother said about their past together, sounds pretty good… I guess.” I answered truthfully.
“Did your friends, Zoe Xing, Maxxisaurus Flare, and Shiaka Kurosawa know about your parents’ troubled relationship? Or were they innocent bystanders who just so happened to be at your home at the time?” Raiyne asked with a sizable grin.
“Look, it was my friend Maxxie’s birthday party of sorts, and things went a bit hectic when my mom walked in and pulled the tragedy lever. We… agreed to support her and call the police if things went wild, but we, um…” I said, trying to clear up my thoughts in order to tell a convincing half-truth.
“Okay, so Shiaka did not want to be involved in this, and decided to go out and get all of us dinner, as my mom did not go to the grocery store and the kitchen was pretty empty. This left Zoe, Maxxie, and I waiting and observing the events from our stairwell, planning to call the police if things went south. Maxxie did that while I… I couldn’t just sit back and let Bryce beat my mom, so I rushed in and, well, I don’t think I need to say where these bruises are from.” I explained, hoping that was enough.
“I briefly spoke to Bryce, he mentioned something about everything going black, his body feeling constricted, as if he were bound and gagged. You wouldn’t happen to have any idea what that was referenced to, would you?” Raiyne said, shocking me a visible amount.
“Um… Well, he did pause a little bit, I’m not sure how hard my mom hit him, in self defense of course, but maybe it caused him to space out and imagine something.” I said, coming up with a pretty lame excuse.
“I also spoke to Caroline about the incident… never mind, I’m guessing she was delusional.” Raiyne noted, discarding a theory.
“What- What did she tell you?” I questioned as my voice cracked
“She mentioned a remote control that… exchanged minds, I believe- I’m sorry, I may just be looking into this case a bit too much.” Raiyne said, dismissing something that made sweat burst from my face.
I was wracked with confusion as to where I should take the conversation. I was upset with my mother for telling Raiyne what happened, but I also did not really blame her for trusting a friend. I wanted to dismiss the notion, but I’m sure Raiyne knew something was up, and felt I could not hide the truth… I’m not sure what exactly the cause was. The fear of being caught in a lie, the mental state I was in during the given night, or the tension of the conversation. It was probably all three, and because of them I could not prevent myself from confessing.
“It’s real.” I murmured, trying to get my point across as simply as possible.
“…This remote your mother spoke of?” Raiyne asked, sounding a bit perplexed.
“Yeah, she… knew we had found a body swapping remote, and we wanted to use it on Bryce. We, myself, my mom, Zoe, and Maxxie all planned on using the device in order to frame Bryce. I am sure my mom told you how awful he is, and… I wanted him to be brought to justice one way or another. We didn’t end up framing him though. We ended up watching as he beat my mother through his own will. I tried to stop him and… I’m still pretty sore from it. Maxxie managed to switch him with Zoe, who was bound and gagged. They stayed in each other’s bodies until the police arrived and… we switched them back to normal. You know the rest.” I said with a low and shaky tone, fearful of my decision to tell Raiyne all of this.
“…You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.” Raiyne replied… understandably.
I had told her what any normal person would believe to be nonsense, and while it fit, that did not mean I was being truthful in the slightest.
“I’m sure that Maxxie, Zoe, and Shiaka will back me up. One of them might even have the device on their person for all I know.” I said, jumping at what first came to mind as plausible evidence.
Raiyne did not say a word to me, and merely left the room. She returned a minute or two later as I began to dread my decision to confess something like this when I really was given an option to back out of this situation. Even if my mother really wanted to tell her the truth, I could talk to her later and come clean. I doubt there would be any bad blood between us as… lying in this situation would be almost expected. That said, before I could wallow in my pit of despair for too long, Raiyne returned to the conference room, and had a familiar trio behind her, all of whom sat around me.
“Hey Jad, you alright?” Maxxie casually said as she took the seat next to me.
“I’m sorry this had to happen, if I had been there…” Shiaka murmured out as she saw me for the first time in a couple hours.
“Detective Underwood said you told her something… difficult to believe.” Zoe noted, starting the discussion.
“Yes. Your friend mentioned something about a… mind transferring remote. His mother mentioned something similar. This wouldn’t sound familiar to any of you, would it?” Raiyne questioned, standing up and looking down at all four of us.
“J-Jad, did you really?” Shiaka questioned with her mouth agape.
“I did. I told her about it and… explained our plans. If any one of you have the device, please… let me have it and show her that it is real.” I asked, expecting for the hand I placed out to be filled with the Vile Doohickey, nothing more, nothing less.
Maxxie was the only one who made any proper motion towards my gesture, reaching into her coat pocket and revealing the teal device that was the reason why the past few hours of events had happened. I picked it up, and pointed its front end at myself, sending a sudden jolt through my spine. I then pointed it at Raiyne, pressing the other numbered button, causing a reaction within her, though only a minor one based on her demeanor. I calmly pressed my right thumb against the Go button, and closed my eyes in advance.
The instantaneous transportation followed by fogginess was something I was hardly even stunned by at this point, as was occupying a new body… that I should describe. Being at least somewhat familiar with a total of five bodies at the time, I was more or less using them all as reference points in comparing the body of Raiyne Underwood to my original body. The posture, height, and general tightness of the muscles I slowly moved certainly did remind me of Zoe. The age I very much felt in my brief time occupying my mother’s body returned returned to me, though I doubt that it was what it felt like for most people in their mid-thirties, as both my mother and Raiyne did appear to take care of themselves.
The weight on my chest made my mind think about Shiaka, as did the hair, if it were a bit longer. With a sense of surprising energy being a callback to Maxxie, as was viewing Raiyne’s skin and having her hair brush down onto the face that was thrusted upon me. If I am being honest, I actually did like Raiyne’s body, but this was merely a demonstration I had chosen to do independent from the others in the room, and felt as if I needed to confront Raiyne, who I probably should have warned better.
While in my body, she had a distinct look of dread on the face she just received. Her hands were shaking, and she was breathing heavily. I could only assume she was panicking internally, and with my friends confused as to my actions, I took it upon myself to lessen her visible fear.
“Hey-” I paused after hearing Raiyne’s voice come out of my current body, and cleared my throat as a result.
“Detective Underwood, you wouldn’t happen to believe me now, would you?” I said, unintentionally imitating her sense of collectedness.
“How- How is this possible?” Raiyne uttered as she gripped my former throat.
“I’m sorry if this is uncomfortable for you, but it was the best way to show you this device’s abilities. I’ll switch us right back.” I claimed as I reached over and grabbed the Vile Doohickey, not even registering the stares from Maxxie, Shiaka, and Zoe.
The process was simple as Raiyne did not even respond to me before I engaged in undoing the body swap. It was a simple procedure as always, one where I made sure to slide the remote back to my original body as I left Raiyne’s.
The fogginess hit me as expected, signifying that all swaps were undone once more. Though my decision did leave me with a sense of failure for being so brash with something to valuable and powerful. Although, my friends helped with that.
“Jad, I hope you know what you’re doing” Zoe whispered to me as he examined a recovering Raiyne.
“I’m pretty sure this is going to bite us in the butt…” Shiaka noted, almost as if she didn’t plan on saying that out loud.
“Eh, you all worry too much, Raiyne’s probably fine!” Maxxie said at a volume Raiyne definitely heard.
“In a sense, I am.” Raiyne began as she was panting slightly.
“My body is fine and… I feel only shaken up by what you did to me… Still, the thirty seconds in your body, Jad, was… Both enough proof to justify the ridiculous notion, and very fascinating…” Raiyne murmured as she left the room silent for about as long as we were occupying each other’s bodies.
“You know, Caroline’s exact words were to not take the body switching remote from you… It is a dangerous piece of machinery that could bring forth quite a lot of problems, and result in god knows how many deaths… But even if I took it, brought it to the proper channels, that may still happen anyways. You four seem like a responsible bunch… I feel as if you should keep it… for now anyways.” Raiyne explained with a prevalent sense of doubt, and simultaneously consideration in her voice.
We all paused after that to exchange our own different reactions to this notion. All of them being shock in some shape or form, and none of them being proper sentences.
“Don’t get me wrong. This is a temporary arrangement. If I so much as catch you near trouble you probably won’t see that remote again. I’m doing this because Caroline asked me to… I owe her a lot from back in the day. We grew up together, enduring the good and the bad. Hell, we were almost like sisters and… Sorry, it’s been a long night, and I should probably have somebody take you kids home.” Raiyne explained, leaving the Vile Doohickey on the table while walking out of the room, leaving the four of us alone.
From there I retrieved the Vile Doohickey, and I trust you can imagine what happened. We were taken back to my home for Zoe and Shiaka to leave together while I went along with Maxxie to her house as, well, my house was a crime scene and I had pajamas at Maxxie’s house. I am aware how odd that sounds, but she was a lifelong friend whose house I slept at whenever she was down in the dumps in order to make her feel better, so having my own clothes, blanket, and air mattress seemed logical. Hell, it’d be a real one if not for how Maxxie liked sleeping in the same room as me.
Actually, that could actually happen, as Maxxie’s life was very cushy, with two working parents that collectively brought in about 250 grand a year, resulting in a frivolous house that they only were at half of the time. This was the other half, meaning Maxxie and I were alone. Sleeping about two feet apart from one another, chatting our way through the night, resulting in us reminiscing about the precursor to the web series T.O.M.E. and eventually drifting off into sleep at about two in the morning. A time wherein I almost forgot about my troubles, and felt that all of this could be placed behind me… though my memories continue for about another week.
I have a question for you though, Verde.
Yes sir.
DId you happen to, I don’t know, make Raiyne give us back the remote?
Well, I made her personality so that she would be more willing to trust your mother’s decisions by increasing their friendship levels in the past. I can indeed directly control certain things, but here I was an observer..
Okay… Could I skip ahead a bit, after giving a recap?
Your answer starts with a Y, and ends with a S.
Yes?
“Just go for it Jad-kun!”
Um… sure?
My apologies, that was a faulty attempt at humor on my part. Please disregard my prior comment.
Chapter 09: Soothing Snowflakes
The week of November sixteen to the twenty-second was certainly an odd one for me, if I may be a bit reductive about things. While Sunday was enjoyable as I spent most of it with Maxxie, the rest of the week was a rather soul crushing barrage of needing to take care of myself, alone, in the home I’ve had my entire life, with both of my mother and Bryce gone, as the former was in the hospital, and the later was sent to jail for… a length that was still being determined, as investigation into Bryce’s seedy crime filled past had just begun.
Now, I was able to see my mother at the hospital, where she told me how proud of me she was, told me that things went well all things considered, and that things will be far better by year’s end. Not that she would be in the hospital for that long, as she was released on Saturday, albeit with an arm she couldn’t use for another two to three weeks. It was reassuring to see that she was okay, but it was hard to shake off the guilt I had when I looked at her all beaten up.
Going to school did not give me much means to forget either. As my relatively small high school had taken to the rumors like oil does to fire. I tried my best to ignore the questions from students I barely even knew, but I think that seeing my teachers, most of whom I think are great, treat me like a victim who needed helped was what really wound me up. It was a shitty week at the end of the day, but as it came to a close, there was at least something to look forward to with Maxxie’s “Super Mega Big Bad B-Day Redux”.
I was able to find sanctuary when I was with my friends during school hours, but our schedules were far from synchronized, and such events were uncommon. This lasted all week, as I felt rather depressed near the end, but having Maxxie claim she was having a re-do of her birthday party was enough to get me through the week long enough to greet Friday night with a smile.
The destination was where we had unattended reservations for last Saturday, a restaurant that Maxxie actually persuaded her family to purchase after she would not shut up about it for a year or so. Not because it was all that exceptional in anything. It was a fairly nice family restaurant, food was alright overall, but their pizza was an exception to that rule, being rather good, or amazing if you trust Maxxie’s taste buds. With that in mind, I was not surprised when Maxxie requested I bring the Vile Doohickey with me when we went out. And before you wonder why we would think of using it in a restaurant, Maxxie reserved us a private room, which we all believed to be a safe enough environment to do some body swapping.
The actual environment was not as large as one would likely expect from a party room, but more than enough for the four of us. Offering a Christmas-esc vibe as we sat in the red and green colored room, and observed the light nighttime snowfall through the sizable windows the room possessed. We naturally brought out winter coats as a result, but for visual reference, and so I don’t throw things out of the blue when describing things, I’ll bring up our outfits once more. I had on basically what I was wearing last week with the biggest difference is how I did get a haircut per Shiaka’s request, which came out notably shorter than I wanted, but I wasn’t too hung up about it. Anyways, to be specific I had on a thick grey long sleeved shirt with some khakis beneath it, making a simple but effective outfit that was honestly what I wore about half the time… I’m not the fashionable sort, okay?
Maxxie, however, was… I think, and had on a rather pricey looking green sweater dress that looked a bit thick, had a belt around the waist for reasons I couldn’t pinpoint. But not to expose her nice legs to the cold, she had on another pair of thick stockings, pink ones this time. She also had on her beloved brown boots that I’m pretty sure she bought twenty pairs of before they became more or less unobtainable. I’m pretty sure they ended up costing her about two or three grand too…
Shiaka looked cute as usual with a scarlet scarf fashioned over her neck, a light black V-neck sweater that covered most of a navy shirt that slightly poked out of her sweater sleeves, only adding to her charm. While beneath that she had on a pair of tight off-white pants, and her designated black winter boots. As for Zoe, he continued looking well dressed in a sky blue button down shirt, with a nice grey sweater over it and black dress pants underneath that. But I’ve come to expect such a look from him ever since… Yeah, I’ll make it quick. It was Zoe’s fifteenth birthday and he wanted a nice suit, but Maxxie ended up being so willing to buy him things that the two went out and spent more than she did on her many boots. I think it was $4,321 or something.
Back to the main story though, we arrived in pairs of two, Zoe and Shiaka came first, while Maxxie and myself were delayed after she got momentarily lost after taking an improper turn. Something that I honestly was not surprised by. Regardless, we were fashionably late, and quickly exchanged greetings with Zoe and Shiaka.
“So, didja place the usual order or do I need to call somebody over?” Maxxie questioned while patting her belly.
“After assuming the room was open, needing to call somebody over to unlock it, and situating myself, I did manage to place an order, though it will still be twenty minutes or so. Ten for the onion rings.” Zoe commented while taking out a cloth from his blazer pocket to clean his glasses.
“Goodie goodie gumdrops!” Maxxie said as she flung her coat on an unused table and jumped to a chair right between Shiaka and Zoe.
“Um, about that, I’m not sure if Maxxie told you, but she did ask for me to bring the remote with me- Which we really should have come up with a name for.” I mentioned, getting sidetracked immediately afterwards.
“Wait, should we actually mess with it? I thought that was for private use only.” Shiaka noted, sounding more confused than anything.
“Assuming that Maxxie’s logic was that A, we are in a fairly enclosed space at the moment, and B, this would be a good time to test out how food tastes in a body besides our own, I do not see much of a problem with that.” Zoe commented after taking a second to ponder.
“Well, it was my logic mister, so maybe you should think about handing those smartypants over to me.” Maxxie quipped back.
Zoe then paused as if he were debating which of the several responses in his head he should use, but then something occurred to me about this plan.
“We probably should still be careful. I mean, we go here often enough that some of the staff knows us, especially Maxxie, so maybe we should at least try acting as each other in case anybody comes in.” I coyly mentioned, feeling a bit bad over how long it took for me to realize this.
“So, you want us to act as each other?” Shiaka asked, sounding less than thrilled about the concept.
“Well, maybe we should use this as some sort of practice if we ever decide to go and impersonate each other. Maxxie said that-” I explained before Maxxie jumped out of her chair, or rather on top of it.
“The birthday girl can explain herself! I was thinking that we all should try spending time in the other’s shoes when second semester rolls around. I mean, Zoe’s got his Calculus and Super English, but the rest of us have a pretty lax schedule ‘til Graduation, so maybe we could have a bit of fun that way? Any objections ladies?” Maxxie summarized, winking at Zoe as she ended.
“Despite your claims, Maxxie, my English course is rather unimpressive and primarily focuses on writing papers, which is done as homework while anonymous peer editing is done during most class days when we are not writing or discussing something we must do for our next paper. My teacher is also very apt at summarizing what she wants from each paper, so there is little issue there. While Calculus is far from a problem during class, when not taking an assessment, we simply overhear instructions and proceed to then work on our designated homework. That said, if I were to be called on while you were in my body, I would be a little embarrassed.” Zoe said with a smirk, not denying the idea though.
“I guess I should be fine. I just have two pretty easy electives to do, an honor’s math class, basic English, PE, and have three study halls a day at this point.” Shiaka mentioned, causing Maxxie’s eyebrows to rise when she mentioned honor’s math, and a grin to appear at three study halls.
“Mine’s basically the same, just switch the English class with an English elective, Creative Writing, and PE with Strength and Conditioning. Pretty basic stuff from class to class, but we should sit down on how things should be done during Winter break.” I added, making sure the three remembered my schedule.
“I’ve got an art class that, thinking about it now, could be a bit of a prob, but just be goofy and let my muscle memories do the work, and thing should be hunky dory.” Maxxie added, throwing her problems under the rug for them to be ignored for the moment… or in her case, probably a month of two..
I understood, this was still a party, I did have a small gift box I had in my lap, and felt I should just get it over with after a few too many seconds of silence fell on the four of us.
“So, are we going to give presents now, or do we want to do something weird involving body swapping for that?” I asked, bringing up my wrapped present to the table.
“Wait- what exactly would we do with the… Transferer?” Shiaka pointed out, giving the Vile Doohickey a name.
“I- I don’t know, it just popped into my head and-” I was interrupted as I came up with an explanation by having the box be grabbed from the person to my right, Maxxie.
“This is not the time for swapping with our Vile Doohickey, it is time to bestow the birthday queen with presents. So display your offerings my servants!” Maxxie jokingly shouted at the three of us.
The trio of presents assembled before her were my aforementioned Playstation TV, Dualshock 4, 64GB Memory Card, Danganronpa 1 and 2, a $300+ present that fit in a fairly small box. A far bigger box containing the three Kill La Kill Nendoroids from Shiaka, who did not forget the self proclaimed ‘Virginity Shrine’ Maxxie had spent thousands on creating, and a PVC Nyarko- sorry, Nyaruko figure, as she already had the Nendoroid. In short, they were things that I thought were super cool, but whenever I got Pokemon plushies or Figmas or whatever, I never felt I got much value out of them.
Zoe, however, presented Maxxie with a box of first and second issues of critically acclaimed modern Image comic books, which I had kept on eye on for a while now, but never went out and actually purchased them for whatever reason. Still, when she flipped through the first volume of Saga and saw people with TV heads having sex with each other, it was clear she was happy with Zoe’s gift that probably just slid under the $200 I gave him… What, he didn’t have a lot of money, and I did just for getting a 3.5 GPA.
In the end, the gifts certainly did inspire quite a bit of joy in Maxxie, who proceeded to group us together in a group hug, which was naturally when the waitress decided to bring in the onion rings and pizzas at the same time. Hooray for awkwardness, I suppose. As we began clearing the room and preparing to dig into the one cheese and one sausage and pepperoni dishes before us, Maxxie pulled the Vile Doohickey form my coat, and declared that there shall be order in the taste comparisons, beginning by shoving a square sausage piece in her face.
After making a slightly inappropriate sound as she finished chewing the piece, clearly enjoying it, Maxxie quickly hit herself with the Vile Doohickey and then decided to return me to her comfortable boots… metaphorically, as I did not get the chance to do so literally the first two times. Seeing as how there was a reason I was occupying her body, I immediately began by smelling the pizza, as the sense is connected with taste, and immediately noticed a difference. It quite simply had a richer aroma that made me question how apt my sense of smell truly was, but I did not ponder much before taking a slice and cautiously taking a bite.
I had previously thought the food in question was a bit on the greasy side, and did not have the amount of flavor I would categorize as corresponding to that level of unhealthiness… or something like that. Much like the scent I picked up, there was something enhanced about consuming this with Maxxie’s mouth, as there were subtle flavors which I did not recall, and what aspects I felt were lacking something of a punch seemed to kick it into overdrive. I quickly gobbled it up in a manner I believe was not too dissimilar from Maxxie, what with the difference in perspective and how I was fixating on the taste as best as I could.
After briefly telling the three my thoughts on the matter, Maxxie more or less decided to play musical bodies, clearly dissatisfied with how the pizza tasted with my tongue and wanting everybody to experience the taste differences we all had. It got a bit hectic and there was a bit of a conflict when Maxxie dropped a slice while in Zoe’s body, so I’ll just skip to the opinions we made about each other’s bodies.
I was shouted at by Maxxie for having the worst tastes, playfully of course, and after my experience, I felt she did have a point, with even Zoe and Shiaka ending up agreeing. It was described as subdued and lacking in comparison to their own, but considering that I was the one who never requested a restaurant, and barely smelled food, I was not really surprised. Maxxie’s was comparatively the most pronounced, relishing flavors and seemingly adding some that I was not able to taste, but Zoe and Shiaka made it clear the jump was not as much for them.
Zoe’s sense of taste, meanwhile, reminded me a bit of the umbrella of kinda trashy toaster oven made frozen ‘pizza’ things I ate as a kid. A feeling of cheapness became apparent as we all used his mouth, not that it tasted bad, but a feeling of wrongness oddly came through us as we did eat using his mouth. Leaving Shiaka being something of the unified average among our group, not really going towards any extreme, enjoying what we did try, but never having any strong feelings in just about either way. With that said and done, we began asking the question of why exactly this is the case.
“Well, if you so much as listen to my voice for a few seconds, you’d be able to tell that it’s notably nasally, which relates back to my nose, often having a good amount of… stuff built up, and diminishing any sort of smell. Not the best experience for you all I’m guessing, but we did learn something in the end.” I said, giving my two cents on my own status, satisfying the other three.
“And seeing as how I’ve got myself a lady who comes in and makes meals for me, whatever I want really, I’m gonna go and say that my palate is the most diverse of all of yours, and as such, I can taste the true flavor you had your minds blown away by. Just wish I didn’t enjoy it so much, but I’m still ten pounds away from doing a diet month, so it’s all good!” Maxxie cheerfully said before she pat on her belly that contained two thirds of a pizza.
“I’ve made it clear how little money my family had before, well, before you convinced your parents to employ my mother, Maxxie.” Zoe mentioned, which I probably should have added beforehand, but it really wasn’t all that important to our body swapping misadventures.
“As such I was given less than stellar food most of the time, and as such feel something akin to remorse when I detect that I am eating food on the same level, as I like to believe I am on a higher level than I was in my childhood. This actually does bring up several psychological questions one could ask about the capabilities of this Vile Doohickey, but I take it that we should ponder them at another time.” Zoe explained, satisfying the three of us.
“I really just think that my tastes are nothing all that special, but… you know how I don’t like milk and eggs?” Shiaka asked, preparing to pull the tragedy lever based on her tone
“Well, I have very bad memories attached to those two things, and they taste really bad to me as a result. I guess we should’ve tested that to really see how things went from the mental and physical angles.” Shiaka mentioned, confusing us a bit with her wording.
“Wait, so if you got a problem with milk, shouldn’t we have seen a difference in how the cheese tasted?” Maxxie questioned before belching a bit.
“Not really. I developed the resentment when I was locked in a place with a bunch of milk and eggs covering everything, even me. It was hot, in the middle of summer, and… ugh… It was so gross“ Shiaka mentioned, causing me to subtly snicker at the idea, and then feel bad for thinking about such a traumatic event in a humorous fashion.
“Don’t get discouraged girl, that’s in the past, and the big bad question still is why you don’t got no problem with bread covered in to-mah-to and cheese?” Maxxie questioned as she rubbed her belly.
“I guess my mind never really associated the two, for some reason. I’m kinda glad though, if it did I wouldn’t be able to come here with you.” Shiaka said with a smile.
“Shiaka, you are our friend, we could easily just order you something else if you wanted to, there’s nothing wrong with that.” I said, trying to keep her from falling down the well of despair.
“Damn straight girl, and ya don’t gotta keep anything from us! We’re friends to the end of time! Forging our own path of destiny until we achieve our mightiest dreams and become the immortals dominating the four corners of this square world!” Maxxie began, entering the rambling state she often did when wound up.
It was about 20:30 at the time we were wrapping up, so the decision to call it a night was made then and there. With Shiaka and Zoe going their own way while Maxxie was going to drop me off, as we lived only a few blocks from each other… And I want to stop it right there because…
You don’t need to say it, I am aware of how… sensual things got.
Look, Verde, the night got very odd because of your little gift of the Vile Doohickey… and I’m not really the most proud of how things went down.
Before we conclude this tale, why exactly do you keep calling it the Vile Doohickey?
Well, you never gave me the device’s proper name, and that’s the the best name I had for it, as constantly referring to it as the device or remote would get pretty repetitive.
Understood, I myself did not devise a proper title for the object, but I suppose yours does fit. Continue whenever you are ready.
I am ready as I’ll ever be, so…
Chapter 10: Erotic Eruption
As we were in the restaurant, the snowfall had intensified, and seeing as how it was going to continue into the night, there would probably be about five inches or so by morning. Still, not like I had to shovel the stuff, nor drive through it, so it was not much of a burden to me, and instead it was merely an appealing site. To make the effect complete, Maxxie had put on Snowflakes, the main January and February track from Persona 4 Golden. It was a pleasing drive as a result, but as we were nearing my home, Maxxie popped a question to me after being silent for a good while.
“Do you wanna stay at my place tonight?” Maxxie asked, sounding more serious than I had come to expect of her.
“Um, I guess so. Any reason in particular?” I asked, more confused at how spontaneous the question was than anything.
“Just had an idea for some fun times, and I wanna make this the best birthday I can, so what better way to do that than with a sleepover?” Maxxie questioned, not really expecting an answer.
I quickly agreed to her proposition, which naturally made her happy, and make a sharp turn away to her place. Nobody else was home after briefly returning during the week, meaning we had the place to ourselves once more. We got everything situated, I pulled the air mattress out, and began setting up her Playstation TV, queuing up the downloads to go on throughout the night while Maxxie was busy doing… I really don’t know what, she just said that she had to take care of “this and that”. Sorry if I am skipping over some details, I just feel like I should move things to 21:30, where I exited the upstairs bathroom to spy Maxxie pacing outside of the door, waiting for me like she really had to let something out of her bum.
“So, Jad, I was just wonderin’ if you’d be down for a little something something I wanna do with the Vile Doohickey.” Maxxie said, exaggerating her playful manner of speaking.
“Probably, but the way you’re asking me does leave me a bit suspicious. What exactly are you planning?” I said, wanting to make sure I played my cards right as the holder of the Vile Doohickey.
“Well, you remember when we all tested each others’ bodies out, right? Well, that was super special awesome, and I wanna try that with something a bit more… extreme.” Maxxie claimed as she put her arm over my shoulder.
“…I think I know what you mean, but I don’t…” I said as I realized that she was implying… intercourse.
“Can we have sex in each other’s bodies, pretty please?” Maxxie asked, dropping any pretense of subtlety.
“Uh- I, wait, what? Maxxie, I- I know you really like this sort- what I mean is that you should- Asking your friend of a decade plus to…” I rambled, unsure of how I should go about this situation.
“I know this seems really icky to you dude, but there’s nothing to worry about. Shame is for dummies, and friendship forged in fierce fires fails to falter… Wouldja believe I made the last bit up myself? ‘Cos I did!” Maxxie shouted as her grip on my shoulders tightened, smiling as I looked at her cute face.
It was here where I began to weigh my options. It is true that I have always housed an attraction to her, but if it meant losing our friendship… it would be the worst decision I could make. I began wondering what her reaction would be if I told her no, and refused to engage in this act with her… and the results my mind mustered cause a sensation of despair to grow in the confines of my chest, souring the idea, causing me to stand in front of her for what felt like several minutes at the least. It was then I stammered out my answer.
“I- I guess I’ll at least try getting naked as you and see if I can get that far.” I answered in order to reach a compromise.
“Hm… how about we shower as each other first. I’m kinda sweaty from all the hype coursing through my veins.” Maxxie coyly said as she pressed herself a bit closer to me.
While I suppose it would be natural for one to assume that I, a teenage boy, would jump at the chance, my answer would have absolutely been a big fat no if not for how, looking into her lovely brown eyes, I knew that doing this would make this day even more special for her. …Actually, I thought that this was the event that would max out our social link.
“Okay, I guess we can manage that. Do you need me to use a certain hair product or-” I asked, trying to be practical for some reason.
“‘Who has time for girly things like that?’ For reals though, I did that this morning, and can do it tomorrow. Just enjoy my nice soap covered body, aight?” Maxxie said, practically jumping up and down as she looked at me.
“…Which bathroom do you want, I guess.” I questioned, beginning my trek downstairs for the Vile Doohickey
“Thata boy! Making this mah best burfday evuh!” Maxxie replied, implying that I could do either one as I looked back at her.
I was shaking as I went to get the Vile Doohickey. My palms were growing sweaty, knees began shaking while my entire body began to feel heavy, and to summarize things pretty aptly, I was more nervous than I was at any other time during this story. With the Vile Doohickey retrieved, I returned to Maxxie, who had her towel in one hand, and a set of silky, intricately designed underwear in the other.
“So, are you ready to lose yourself?” Maxxie whispered to me in a very excited voice.
“I- I guess. But if I can’t do this comfortably then I-” My excuse was cut off by Maxxie snatching the Vile Doohickey.
“Trust me Jad, you’re gonna be golden!” Maxxie said as she quickly did what needed to be down with the Vile Doohickey, plopping us back into each other’s bodies.
Seeing as how I had previously occupied Maxxie’s body earlier in the evening, I adapted rather quickly. The level of energy and pleasing sense of warmth subconsciously put a smile on my face, although another sensation was going through my temporary body. It reminded me a bit of when I was fifteen and had an unwanted erection while at school. I had gone into the bathroom, examined and touched my penis, began stroking it and- yes, I see you trying to hide a smile on your face, Verde! I very rarely ever got that feeling again, about seven times or so over the past three years, and never really enjoyed the act of doing it, not physically, but mentally I found it to be very undesirable.
Or if you want me to be blunt about it, I was horny while in Maxxie’s body. In retrospect, it was a rather interesting phenomena. One involving Maxxie’s libido remaining as I entered her body, and, seemingly bringing Maxxie’s pansexuality with it. I initially thought it was very much something only existing in the back of my mind, but now it seemed to be more or less equal with my own demisexuality. It made me feel very odd as I unintentionally imagined people I never met and felt my body react to them, but when I thought of Maxxie, and began imagining that it was her currently feeling up my original body, I felt a sensation that made me more than a little embarrassed.
I quickly mumbled something to Maxxie before I rushed to the downstairs bathroom, carrying the lingerie and towel she had in her hands before our switch. I was panting after I reached the bathroom and quickly locked the door if only for the feeling of security that I was desperately seeking at the moment. I was nervous, terrified, and really wanted to free myself from this vice of sexual tension. Following a glance at the bathroom mirror, I felt overly contained by the clothes Maxxie had been wearing, and began stripping them off without a thought towards her personal privacy. I only hesitated after I tossed away the modesty shorts, and began hugging my body, looking at myself in Maxxie’s naked body in the mirror.
My mind was being bombarded with questions about this situation and whether or not this was the right thing to do. If I should regretfully tell her no here and now, or just go along with it because… just imagining it made me feel really nice. What ultimately caught my attention was the shower behind me, my mind imagining the sensation of the cool water gracefully dripping down my soft skin. The thoughts alone were enough to make my crotch oozes with a warm liquid.
I quickly entered the shower as a result, and felt the burst of cold water hit me, relieving some of my tension as it sent a shiver throughout my body. I resumed panting as the water began warming up, pleasantly coating my skin and brushing through my wet hair. This sadly caused my sexual desires to only increase, and before I even got the soap to clean off the mildly sweaty body I was in, I began placing my hand near Maxxie’s private regions. My thoughts of regret were shot down by the bliss I was feeling, and how I knew that Maxxie would not disapprove of my actions.
I bit my tongue as I nervously began touching my borrowed body, not wanting Maxxie to hear the sounds of her own voice moan in delight, or have myself become more aroused by hearing my best friend’s voice moan in sexual lust. I eventually fell on the shower floor, sending my free hand to my breasts in order to increase the pleasure I could not prevent myself from pursuing. In the back of my mind I had a feeling of disgust, imagining what I looked like to an observer.
The climax was only a matter of time, as I ended up letting out a loud moan of relief when the juices poured out of my feminine parts, bringing with them a sense of ecstasy that I couldn’t help but take delight in. I panted as the water continued to spray down on me, cooling me off as my already warm body was on fire due to my actions. I spontaneously bashed my borrowed head against the shower wall in regret of my actions, only to then realize how dumb such an action was, and how Maxxie would not think badly of me for doing what I did. This was okay, it felt good, I was allowed to do this, but part of me was still having a hard time getting over the sense of wrongness I had unintentionally applied to my actions.
“Maxxie, please don’t hate me for this.” I muttered, hearing her voice and becoming more aroused.
“Dude, I could never hate you. Am kinda upset you couldn’t hold your horses though.” Maxxie said in my voice, peeking through the shower curtain.
I yelped in response, shocked at how Maxxie could enter a room I locked, though she thankfully explained it to me.
“You really think I don’t have keys to every door in this place? Please!” Maxxie coyly said as she pulled away the shower curtain.
What I saw was honestly a familiar sight, though I never very much stared at it, especially from my current angle. It was my original body, as naked as I was at the moment. However, it did sport something I seldom had in the form of an erection that caught my eyes. For some reason I found myself giggling at the concept, possibly due to the chemicals that were pumped through my current body seconds ago.
“So, you ready for me?” Maxxie said with a chuckle as she placed one of my shaven legs into the shower with me.
I found myself unable to deny her, and immediately nodded at the notion, part of my mind loathing the fact I did not have the restraint to say no to her. Most of me, however, was just craving to let Maxxie do her thing, and gleefully anticipating it. Yes, it was weird to imagine having sex with your own body, but as I began noticing her subtle gestures and the manner in which she moved, focused on her manner of speaking and her upbeat attitude, the body seemed to lose meaning, and instead I was simply viewing her as somebody who I loved… and was about to stick my former penis into her former vagina.
Maxxie slyly entered the shower with me and began by pushing me out of the shower head’s range and latching her mouth against mine causing out borrowed tongues to mingle as I played along, relishing in a foreign feeling coming over my body. Before we even let go I felt her stick it inside of me, causing a certain degree of shock as it managed to simply fit inside of my current body, but as Maxxie began thrusting it in and out, I began swaying my hips along with it, sending a wave of bliss through my body. But I probably should admit that I was also completely and utterly horrified as I attempted to comprehend not only this situation, but the sensations that were flowing through my body and entering my mind.
I began to speak back to Maxxie, who was smiling and giggling as she continued thrusting, emitting her encouragement for me to keep going and stating her physical delight in the experience. I was unable to ask her to possibly stop or let me leave the shower. I did not want for this to happen, and had no idea what I was doing, or whether or not I will be able to look at Maxxie or even look at myself the same way again. But as we continued to make love, the warm water coating our naked bodies. I began to eventually feel a form of build up once more, a release beyond the awkward drippings I had been leaking for a few minutes, and felt I needed to let something larger out. Maxxie claimed she needed to do the same.
This revelation caused Maxxie to pause, remaining ‘inside’ her original body, but reaching out of the shower and towards something I did not realize she brought with her. An MP3 player she quickly used to begin playing a song that, in a mind as bizarre as her’s, may make sense. It was Thomas Truong’s READY to Lose Yourself, a mashup between Idolm@ster and Eminem… and it played as we resumed our intercourse. It was the bizarre track that was roaring through my ears at max volume as I felt a burst come through my womanly parts right after Maxxie removed her manly parts from me and ejaculated on my leg, only for it to quickly be washed off by the water raining down upon us.
There was a moment of silence, aside from the aforementioned song, which was only a minute in, following our orgasms. We were both panting and more or less looking away from each other, our- or at least my mind, trying to comprehend what just happened, and determining what the hell I should even say to Maxxie. As I looked at her in the eyes, gazing into my original body’s green eyes, I began to chuckle. She did the same with me. It evolved into regular laughter and soon hysterics as we both just pumped an assortment of happy chemicals through our bodies, and both had very pleasurable experienced, at least physically.
I could feel my desires receding as I turned off the shower, and slowly walked out of it on legs that I felt would give out at any moment during our… intimate experience. We both promptly covered ourselves with towels, and Maxxie decided to start up the ‘pillow talk’ right then and there.
“Oh wow, that was great!” Maxxie said, still laughing a bit and sounding a bit uncanny with my voice.
“I was- to be honest, a bit scared- not because it was bad it was just- you know- a different thing that any that I-” I rambled, still very nervous about what just happened.
“Damn you can be a cutie wootie in my bod. Wanna stay like this for round two?” Maxxie asked like what we did was nothing.
“I… I would actually like to not do that… I’m good, Maxxie.” I said as I let out a bit of nervous laughter.
“So we just gonna do this the other way around? I’m guessing it will feel a bit better, what with the… familiarity we just gained” Maxxie whispered to me with a chuckle.
“…Can we just get back to normal and play Smash Brothers until midnight?” I mumbled in my cute voice.
Maxxie responded with an uproar in my voice, which made me a bit glad that I was more reserved than she was.
“Dude- Jad, if I… If I can bring in the real talk for a couple minutes, I am really surprised you were okay with that.” Maxxie said as she leaned in to hug me.
“I would not say I was ‘okay’ with it, I did it to make you happy, Maxxie.” I explained while rubbing my former body’s back.
“Which you did by giving me the best birthday ever, dude! I mean, yeah things got a bit weird here and there, but combine these two super special awesome Saturdays, and I don’t think we can ever top this! …Prolly shouldn’t have said that so negative-like.” Maxxie then groaned and began rubbing her hand around my former body’s curly brown hair.
There was a silence upon us as I looked at both of our bodies in the mirror. I was not sure what exactly looked different to me at the moment, but seeing both of us, clad only in towels, made me feel like things had indeed changed after this… very abnormal and awkward night.
“So, should we just get into our pajamas and go through Classic with co-op a couple times?” I asked Maxxie, rather meekly.
Maxxie laughed and… well, I feel it would be a good place to end it here. Yes, we did return to our bodies and Maxxie was able to convince me to sleep with her in the queen sized mattress in the guest room, with clothes on and no naughty stuff of course. But I feel as if that was the emotional peak and, as you know, that is where my memories do end.
You likely could have explained that more elegantly.
Look, it was something I thought was not important, and I simply felt as if things reached their climax- pardon the pun, after her and I… did it..
Fair enough, as I would have likely stopped you when you said who selected what character and how each encounter went.
But… I’m done here, right?
You have recited a tale wherein you and your friends used a device given by me for sexual pleasure. You personally became more comfortable with the sexual acts. You helped free your mother from a criminal who was essentially threatening to kill her unless she remained his wife. As a result, you obtained millions for your mother and yourself, which would place you in a position where it would be likely for you and your friends to revolutionize the world with mind exchanging technology. Considering my original projected outcomes, I’d say you finished rather well Jad. So good on you.
Thanks… So, about that explanation you promised me…
Ah, yes, I do remember- it would be troubling if I forgot so suddenly. Let take care of this and that and I will be with you shortly.
Oh, okay… Thanks Verde.
Chapter 11: Obtuse Origins
Now that we got everything out of the way… I’ll just start with a broad question. Who or what are you Verde Dusk?
Let me begin by saying that this is a rather complicated aspect, and I may be redundant for the sake of clarity. I mentioned the terms Prime State and Alternate State to you before, and I feel I should explain them before I answer your question directly. The Prime State is a term referring to the Universe as how it ‘naturally’ exists. It is a very stubborn series of events and people that is not the easiest thing to change. Alternate States are something of the opposite, very flexible what-if renditions of a planet, solar system, galaxy, and so forth. They are, however, temporary states, and the universe does end up reverting back into the Prime State unless a being capable of creating an Alternate State is there to maintain its existence.
Those beings, ones capable of creating alternate worlds which they are in control of, are known as Omnishifter. I, Verde Dusk, am an Omnishifter. The two Alternate States you have experienced thus far were of my creation. The reasoning behind our creation of these Alternate States vary among my plentiful kind. Some wish to learn of the boundless potentials held in even the most seemingly insignificant corner of the universe. Others relish in their godlike powers and enjoy playing the role of a deity among an innocent population of their own creation. I, personally, consider myself something of a researcher. Hence why I am examining you, Jad Novus. A single lifeform who I am curious as to how he would react to a variety of situations I place him in.
Though, I suppose you have many questions about the situation you are currently placed in. Where are you, what is happening to you, et cetera. You, in regards to your physical form, are still in Oransen, as far as the Prime State of the universe is concerned, you have yet to meet me, which is due to what exactly ‘you’ are at the moment. I essentially made a copy of your mind and body as of your eighteenth birthday, October 8th, 2014, hence why it is your final memory prior to meeting me. From there, you have changed from both your memories of the Alternate States, and our interactions with one another.
As for the where you are, I would not be hesitant to call it my domain, an area of the universe that I am in complete control over, my private space if one will. I have said since we first met that you could leave it whenever you so pleased, but I was not very clear about what that meant, at least in regards to memories. I cannot guarantee the state of your memories if you so choose to leave this place in the middle of an experiment, and they may simply be gone. I doubt I would ever interact with you if such a thing happened, but if you do choose to simply take a break from my experiments and resume your everyday life, I can guarantee that they would remain in tact. Meaning you do not need to spend an eternity locked in here with me.
…Wow. That’s just… Where the fuck do I begin… Wait, what exactly am I doing back on Earth?
Time is very… fluid for me regardless of whether or not I am in an Alternate State of the Prime State of the universe, Jad. If you are curious about what would happen if you resume your ordinary life, I would likely have you return to your bed, the same day I copied your mind for the sake of this experiment. And before you even ponder asking, I shall be tightly lipped about your future, Jad. I have attempted it with another, back quite a long time ago, and the results were very… unpleasant.
Okay… but how exactly did you do all these things?
It is a very complex process that I was always aware of ever since I… existed. I am already speaking in a form that is not native to me, and the best answer I may provide is how I simply can create Alternate States such as the ones you experienced. The first one, the one wherein you shared a body with Miss Juniper Hemming was an alternate history dating back to a few millennia before your birth. One where I tampered with the vegetation in what eventually became the Americas, thus giving unique abilities to those who consumed it for generations. With these so-called magical abilities, these people changed into what was essentially a new species, one who set out to dominate the world due to a simple desire for power that arose in their culture given this newly introduced factor. Though things were rather complicated with the centipede trains and Pegasi.
As for this most recently created Alternate State, I mostly changed the Prime State in regards to Bryce and Raiyne, keeping much of reality the same, and only then inserting the Vile Doohickey as you have taken to calling it. It was very simple in comparison, but the panic you felt last time was enough inspiration for me to dial back my plans for the second experiment.
Wait, how many Alternate States are there?
To be quite blunt, infinite. Any possible sequence of events that can be justified may be used to create any reality one could imagine. From the change in a single person, to the alteration of an entire planet. In fact, there are a few Alternate States wherein you were a major player.
R-Really? What were they- What happened in them?
Well, I know quite a bit of one created by an Omnishifter I have had… conversed with a few times, by the name of Vincent Dawn. A very colorful character who… I feel as if I should add some backstory before explaining how you become involved in this. Vincent Dawn began by adding introducing a group of individuals into your country during the twentieth century. It was here where he had a young man by the name of Lou Underwood to discover an abnormality in the nearby woods of where he would one day live. This was known as a Rift, a portal of sorts to another world, one that Vincent Dawn tied to opening about an hour after rainfall. Afterwards, a creature from another world would come and attempt to wreck havoc on the nearby town of Rainy Woods. Though these beings were miraculously kept a secret, thanks to Vincent Dawn’s intervention in no small part, this was a conflict that lasted over thirty years. With Lou Underwood devoting almost every day of his life to slaying these vicious beings, losing some of his loved ones along the way, but always being restored to top physical condition after every battle, thanks to the… attributes of the Rifts.
However, this was all leading up until 2003, where Lou saved his nineteen-year-old niece, Raiyne Underwood, from a wolf-like monster who originated from a Rift. Now, it is here where I should say that Vincent Dawn did change quite a bit with this Prime State, at least from your perspective. Altering the relationships held by your family and friends, and thus no longer having your mother be Caroline Steticks. Instead, Caroline was killed as a ploy by a person who Vincent Dawn created especially for this Alternate State. They began their life as Whisp, an innocent appearing being from the Rift who Raiyne wished to trust. This Whisp ended up destroying Raiyne. Manipulating her mentally with its unique abilities, and eventually leaving her in a state wherein she begged for death, surrendering her own body in a move that was… very poor in the grand scheme of things.
The details are complex, but the idea is that Whisp managed to take over Raiyne’s body, thus becoming the one known as Abigale Quinlan. An immortal demigod of sorts, able to manipulate matter while in possession of an intellect that was powerful in the wrong hands, and there were few worse who could have possessed it. She used her great power to kill Lou Underwood, destroy Rainy Woods, and seal away the Rifts, for the time being anyhow. She was a very amoral person, viewing the world as her plaything, and there was about nothing that it could do to stop her.
She led a string of petty crimes and spontaneous unsolved murders, and eventually decided, for her perverse idea of fun, kill over fifty million people in a matter of minutes. Still, Vincent Dawn did give her a fatal flaw, in that she grew tired of her power, and seeked a challenge. She had planned to cause terror throughout the world by causing a miniature disaster every week, going around the world, and leaving a body in her wake. She planned to do this by transferring her mind into the bodies of others using some technology not dissimilar from that of the Vile Doohickey, but such a plan failed after she entered her first body, Jad Spencer. Jad Spencer was a modified version of yourself, lovingly renamed as, well a joke on Vincent Dawn’s part, referring to a character by the name of Rad Spencer.
So, somebody who was… I suppose based on you would be a better way to put it, was placed in the body of Abigale Quinlan, while Abigale Quinlan was placed in their body, where they quickly perished, only to not have their mind enter a new body, and instead die with Jad Spencer’s body. Jad Spencer was horrified, broken, and understandably so. Though things may have been alright if not for a few things. They had no way to prove they were not really Abigale Quinlan, and they just happened to meet a relic left behind Abigale Quinlan who would be Jad Spencer’s downfall, Peatrice. A mind-based Artificial Intelligence that was created by Abigale Quinlan, and just so happened to view this situation as a good opportunity to, much like his creator, cause some havoc. They were able to tip off the United State government, and teach Jad Spencer how to reach into some dirt, and pull out a knife, gun, whatever they could imagine really.
I should note just how much of a mess Abigale Quinlan made before she left, sending the United State of America into a panic. She caused the law enforcement fo the country to grow substantially in its power, and apprehending, or killing her, was the nation’s number one priority. Despite Jad Spencer’s efforts to be peaceful about this, they were hunted by the government, running while being afraid to necessarily fight back, and being captured within an hour of fleeing.
Jad Spencer quickly found a barrel of a gun firing into his face once captured, but as his body would heal any wound in a matter of seconds, it only acted as a painful experience, far from a lethal one. In fact, the United States military quickly learned of Jad Spencer’s abilities, and chose to try and execute them. This week of painful experiences warped Jad Spencer’s mind, and thanks to the influence of Peatrice, it was forever tainted with hatred.
Jad Spencer was rapidly vanishing because of this, and they found themselves becoming more like the person who they appeared to be. One who would lure out others under the guise of sex, only to then murder them with a grin on their face. Or one who would simply send a plane they were on crashing in an inferno, simply because they were a bit bored. What I am saying is that Jad Spencer became Abigale Quinlan. It was only certain after they looked over the grave reading Jad Spencer, abandoned his former friends, and decided to see if they still felt any love for their parents by murdering them. The answer was no.
Now, I feel as if Vincent Dawn had some problems with stopping this person, but had two elements in place. A lingering doubt in the back of this new Abigale Quinlan’s mind, and the invention of an anti-gravity machine that would be mixed with an artificial vacuum to isolate Abigale Quinlan from matter, and ideally kill her. The government used such a device, along with a spaceship, to send Abigale Quinlan into space, the only place that they really could dispose of her.
…Which lasted for a few years. You see, Vincent Dawn grew bored and felt there was another loose end he should tie up, that of the Rifts. I did not mention it for the sake of brevity, but Abigale Quinlan did close those Rifts, but as it turns out, doing so eventually caused the world behind the Rifts, a world filled with various sentient slimes, bizarre insects, and dangerous reptilian lifeforms, to combine with the world of human’s. Vincent Dawn’s justification for this was fairly vague, but the end result was an apocalypse.
Man mutated an immense amount, billions died, and all forms of civilization more or less crumbled. It was a bleak few years as society rebuilt itself into a post-apocalypse one, but even that did not last long. You see, as it turns out the body of Raiyne, Abigale Quinlan, and Jad Spencer in the end ended up falling back to Earth, weakened, but given a new persona. She was a very childish young woman by the name of Punky, and with the help of a young man who was partially Lobster by the name of Yuccot Kikansky, helped re-establish the world that was ruined… only for Vincent Dawn to then destroy the remnants of humanity out of his own lack of care for others.
What?
I apologize for my brevity, but much of the information there I found to be irrelevant, such as the organization known as Zil, and a group of wolfmen known as the Nytekin. I did find his use of other people as, well, “characters” was the term he used. But I feel as if I have spoken enough about Vincent Dawn for the moment. I do apologize for talking helm of this conversation, but I simply wished for you to be well informed. Now, if you happen to have any questions, please do ask.
I… Taking all that into consideration, I have to ask… Are you just using me? Am I just some sort of toy to you?
Jad, I understand your reasoning, especially after I just informed you of Vincent Dawn, but I do not in anyway condone his actions. He simply prefers to be a bit more… dominating when using his powers. I was admittedly trying to exercise good manners and not speak ill of others, but the truth is that he is a very cruel and rude individual who does not feel any form of empathy, let alone sympathy for others. While I will not deny that I am using you for an experiment, I really would dislike knowing that you are doing this against your will. I apologize for the first Alternate State I made for you, things did not… go as planned. I simply wanted to see how you would react to continuous… extreme circumstances. I apologize if I hurt you in any way, and I have placed a literal door you simply need to walk through if you wish to leave this place.
…So I can then potentially realize what I did, and hate myself for giving this up.
Hm?
Look, Verde, I think that I am allowed to say you put me through some shit during these last two experiments. But there’s one thing Zoe always told me to do if an opportunity that very few people will ever have comes up. Grab it, grip it so tight that you feel your fingers may pop off, and never let it go. Granted, I disagree with that extremity, but the notion is one I agree with when, oh, I don’t know, a god comes down and offers you the ability to explore various alternate realities.
While I disagree with being called a god, as I can do very little to Prime States, I appreciate your willingness to participate, so thank you, Jad Novus.
No problem, thanks for the opportunity…
…
…
…I am just about ready for my next experiment, but if you wish to, say, return for a few days in your life in the Prime State, only to then return here, I think I can arrange something…
I guess this is a lot to take in, and I could go for a bit of normalcy, so… maybe a week, until October 15th… 2014 of course.
No problem- and Jad, thanks again, I really do appreciate it. *Kiss*
Wow, I… It was on the cheek, but still, a bit unexpected.
My apologies. The human form I gave myself is a bit less… stable than what I am used to, and I guess that simply slipped out. Regardless, I look forward to seeing you again, Jad.