Karyn gaped. "You're kidding me," she said. "Sarah changed? Seriously?"
Jon nodded, hovering at eye-level with Karyn as the two walked home from the bus stop. "Yeah," she said. "She...he's a pixie now, too."
Karyn half-smiled, then shook her head. "I suppose I shouldn't be amused by this," she said, her ears angling back, reflecting her irritation. "Dammit, the one time one of my enemies gets her comeuppance, and it's something I can't feel good about. How's she...how's he taking it?"
Jon shrugged. "Not too well, from what I could tell," she replied. "He looked like he was trying to stay under cover, and I can't say I blame him. If the word got out that the queen bee of the school became a pixie-boy, he'd never live it down."
Karyn nodded. "No kidding. I don't think he can keep it secret forever, though. I wonder what all the guys she had wrapped around her little finger are gonna think?"
Jon winced. "I dunno," she said, "but that's probably one of the reasons he wants to stay hidden. Crap, now I'm actually getting worried. What if they come after him or something?"
"They won't, I don't think," Karyn replied. "The school officials don't put up with that kind of crap, even in the old reality. I'd be more worried about Sarah doing something to himself; I mean, his entire life is about to fall apart."
There was a brief pause in the conversation, as the two friends walked down the sidewalk towards their houses. Finally, Jon spoke. "Karyn?" she asked. "Do you...do you think we should try to help him?"
Karyn's eyes went wide. "Help him?" she gasped. "Help Sarah? Are you serious?"
Jon sighed. "I know you hate Sarah," she said, "and I don't blame you, but you made a good point; what if he does start to self-destruct? You don't really want that, do you?"
Karyn hung her head, ears drooping. "Dammit," she said, "why do I have to feel sorry for my worst enemy? But no, I guess I don't. Do you really think he'd want our help, though?"
"Probably not," Jon admitted. "But at the very least, maybe we should keep an eye on him. If things start looking bad, we step in or let his parents know, I guess."
"Alright," Karyn agreed. She wasn't happy about the idea of helping the person who made high school such a pain for her, but this might be way more important than her personal problems. There was another lull in the conversation as they approached Karyn's house.
"So, is he cute?" Karyn asked, as they were about to split up.
"Wh-what kind of question is that?" Jon asked.
"Well, you seem so concerned with helping him all of a sudden..."
Jon flushed bright red. "I just don't want to come to school one day and find out he killed himself, okay?" she sputtered. Turning, she sped off toward her house.
She was mostly calmed down by the time she got home, and she was in as much of a good mood as could expected of someone who was still getting used to being an entirely different sex and species when she flitted in through the mail slot. Mikey, on the other hand, was seated on the living-room couch and looked to be downright pissed. Jon couldn't immediately tell why, though. She set down her backpack by the door and flitted over towards her brother-turned-sister.
"Holy crap, Mike," she blurted, "where are your fingers!?"
"Gone." Mikey said bitterly. "I guess my body saved it for a special surprise, just when I was beginning to get the hang of things."
"Ah, crap, that must really suck," Jon said. She wasn't really sure that was the right thing to say, but she couldn't come up with anything better.
"Oh, no, it's okay," Mikey replied, her voice dripping with sarcasm as she lifted one talon up for view. "I have these now, they're every bit as good as hands. Except for the part where they're attached to my legs."
Jon really wasn't sure how to respond, so she simply went up to her room; her oversized posessions weren't going to list themselves on eBay.
