"So people don't think it's weird that you have a dog named 'Dad?'" Jonni gave the big golden retriever curled up by the fireplace a worried look. The dog looked back at her impassively, gave a lazy wag of its tail, and went back to sleep.
"Not really," Jonni's mother, who now quite understandably went under the new name of Liam, shrugged, "DeMorrell's wishes pretty much derailed our entire lives."
"But no one else knows what happened to us! They could never understand," Jonni said insistently, "Doesn't it seem a little, well, weird?"
"Jonni, you have to understand, in this world, your father and I are dead. Really, as far as other people are concerned, your father never existed," Liam paused for emphasis, let that sink in, "I'm my own brother for God's sake! That's how reality accommidated a male, 18 year old me. Besides most people think it's a coping mechanism the twins use to get over the death of their father."
"You seem pretty calm about all this," Jonni said with some admiration. She and Nora had both seen their share of despair over their new lives. Liam was cool as a cucumber.
"I can't afford to be anything else. In spite of everything I'm still the twins' mother, and yours too by the way," Liam gave Jonni a level look, "I have to keep things together for my kids."
"So your husband never existed? Then where did your kids come from?" Nora chimed in. She had tried not to betray her interest, but she just had to ask. When Liam had been Linda and Nora was still her father, Jack, she had never been particularly fond of her son-in-law, Gary Gibson.
She had been contributing something to the conversation here and there, but was otherwise content to let Jonni take the lead. She was supposed to be the supportive friend, not a direct participant. "Liam" had seemed surprised Jonni told what an "outsider" about the stone at all, and especially what it had done to them.
Liam nodded his head as if to say such a question was logical, but easily answered, "Right, but only half right. Liam Merlin doesn't have any kids, but Linda Merlin did before she died." The young man's eyes grew far away for a second, his voice flat and lifeless. Coming back to himself, Liam smiled that charming smile of his and continued, "She had three kids just like before - - but not with the same man! Gary Gibson was never born in this world. Apparently, I, or rather Linda, married Eric Connors. That probably explains why you're a busty redhead and the twins are boy-girl instead of girl-girl."
"What? That doesn't make any damn sense!" Jonni snapped. Had getting turned into a guy made her mom retarded or something? "You know what happened! DeMorrell used the stone. He made wishes. DNA didn't do this to me! He did!"
"I've had plenty of time to think about how the stone works," Liam correctly interpeted an irritated look from Jonni and quickly responded, "Not that you haven't! But you're forgetting something. The stone makes things as if they were always that way. As soon as your father was transformed it was as if he had never existed, but all of you were already changed. The stone just keeps things as internally consistent as it can."
"She's right," Nora murmurred with a look of respect toward Liam, "The law of the conservation of mass and energy. The most efficient exchanges would be the simplest ones, especially those with a common root, and the stone could repair damage to the local quantum field by fusing formerly seperate causations together with successive wishes."
"Right," Liam smiled and pointed at Nora, "That's what I'm trying to say, I think. You've really caught on to all of this since Jonni told you about the stone, huh?"
Nora smiled self-consciously, looking down and away. There was no way she could tell him the truth. It would be too much on top of everything else. Linda, now Liam, still thought his/her father was dead.
"Well, you've obviously given it a lot more thought than I have," Jonni broke in. It was so weird to think that she had a new father, one she had never known.
"I understand. You've had other things to worry about," Liam directed a sympathetic look toward Jonni's swollen belly, "He raped you?"
"No, he used the stone to make me wet and willing," Jonni tried to sound offhand, as if she were at peace with it. Of course, it was also partly a lie. DeMorrell hadn't totally overwhelmed her with lust. The choice had been hers. He had just used the stone to make it easier for her to give in, "It was even pleasant, I guess, until he made me remember who I was anyway."
"How did you get away?"
Jonni had made up her mind. No matter how changed, Liam still had a mother's love and wisdom. He could be trusted. He was still the legal guardian of the twins, entrusted to him by "Linda's" will. They were currently at school, but would be home on the bus fairly soon. Liam still took care of Dad, even if no one was sure that Dad actually remembered who and what he once was. She was going to do it.
"With this," Jonni removed her hand from the pocket of her coat and displayed the stone in her dainty palm, "He finally fucked up. We got it from him and we escaped."
Liam leapt up from his seat in a sudden burst of speed...
