"Whoever's name you got, starting tomorrow morning, you can make three changes to him or her, every day, for one week," Nate explained.
"Make changes? How am I supposed to do that?" Jon asked.
"Well, with wishes, obviously," Nate said.
Jon's eyes went wide. Did Nate somehow know about the wishing stone? "Am I supposed to hold something while I do that?" he asked.
"Of course you do," he said. Okay, that was it - he knew. Somehow, he knew about the stone! "You have to hold the slip of paper with the name on it." Oh, okay. Well, maybe not. But Jon was absolutely sure that this had something to do with the stone, probably with that careless wish he made for something interesting to happen. Why else would Nate be so casual, talking about making wishes?
"So, wait a minute. Why kind of changes can I make?" Jon asked.
"Physical, mental, anything really, just as long as it has something to do with the person you chose from the hat," Nate said. "But you get three wishes a day, and if you want to, you can use a wish to undo a previous one." Okay, that was different than the wishing stone. "Remember, you get three a day, for a week. That's 21 wishes. I think that's more than enough to mess with someone's life."
"Wait a minute," Jon said, something occurring to him. "If I got this person's name ..." he said, holding up the slip of paper in his hand. "That means my name is in there too, right? How do I know who got my name?"
"You don't. You're not supposed to. Although, maybe you could figure it out by what changes happen to you, if you even notice them," Nate said.
"What do you mean - if I notice them?"
"Well, some of the changes could change your mind. Memories, personality, that sort of thing. You could be changed and not even realize it, especially if the person wishes for you not to notice."
"That's allowed?" Jon asked.
"Why not?" Nate asked, shrugging his shoulders.
Jon wasn't sure how to respond to that. Of course, he probably shouldn't be so upset about it. After all, the wishing stone did that same thing, as a default.
"Well, I've got to get to the other houses before it gets too dark outside. Have fun," Nate said, then turned and walked down to the street.
Jon closed the door, then looked down at the slip of paper in his hand. So whose name did he get? Who would he be able to change, three times a day, for one week?
