Linda Madison had just discovered that her youngest son had become a demon-girl overnight when she was called away by another scream in the general direction of Jon's room. She rushed over to find that Jon had also changed during the night, and was now a naga-girl. However, Jon was handling things a bit better than Mikey, and had managed to calm herself down enough to think straight by the time her mom got there.
"Listen," Mrs. Madison said, when it became clear that Jon was at least somewhat stable, "Mikey's changed too, and she's really losing it. I'll be back to help you, but I really need to get her settled down first." She returned to Mikey's room, leaving Jon by herself.
Jon was shocked by this turn of events, though she supposed it was kind of silly to be surprised that a disease as common as the common cold might affect her family. She could hear Mikey down the hall, clearly in hysterics. Was it just the gender change that upset her, or had she become something actually unpleasant to be? Jon didn't know, but it was definitely time to fix this. She reached for the stone.
"Listen, dear," Mrs. Madison said, in as soothing a voice as she could manage. "I know this seems terrible to you, and I can understand why. But we don't even know if it's a permanent transformation yet. Odds are that you'll be back to normal within a month."
"I...I c-can't spend a m-m-month like th-this!" Mikey stammered, tears streaming down her crimson face. She'd always been a rambunctious, active boy, and now she was going to have to be a girl!? She couldn't stand the thought of it! "I'm a f-f-freak! And wh-what if I'm s-s-stuck like th-this?"
Linda sighed. "Well, dear, if you are stuck like this, then you're stuck," she said. "Either way, there's nothing you can do about it. And you're not a freak, honey. Lots of people go through changes every year, and some are even stranger than yours. Now, I know you're probably going to need a while to really calm down, but I want you to at least come eat some breakfast; I don't want you to be any later for school than necessary."
The stone was not on the nightatand. Nor was it in the nighstand. In fact, it didn't seem to be anywhere Jon thought she might have out it. Where had it gone? Had she left it with Karyn? She had to find it, or she might never get back to normal!
