In the examination room, the nurse looked Jon over carefully. With a special diamond tipped scraper, she collected a small sample of material from Jon's arm and entered it into a machine installed in the wall. Looking at the results on her computer, she nodded.
"Well, it's obvious you're an inorganic. Not unheard of, but rare enough. I can't take a blood sample, since you have no body fluids to speak of. Still, from the looks of you, I'd say you're a golem. Do you know what a golem is?"
Jon shook her head. In reality, she knew a few things, but she suspected her rudimentary knowledge would do her very little good here.
"A golem is a being of stone, ceramic, or some other inorganic material brought to life by magic. Like other inorganics, your body is entirely sustained by whatever kind of magic animated you. For some golems, it's a special piece of paper inside their head with ancient script on it. With others, it's something located outside their bodies that they have to keep safe, usually buried in a remote location. As for you, your power source is an internal core of magic. Unlike the others, your core will have to be recharged, but not too often. You also won't have to eat or breathe to survive. In fact, you won't age either, at least not the same way we do. You will still sleep, mind you, but it's more of a kind of dormancy than a rest period. One notable drawback, which you know full well by now, is that you can't speak or move your face. This will make it difficult sometimes to connect with your peers, but there are ways around this."
The nurse placed herself in front of Jon. "And now for the bad news. Unlike most organic changes, all inorganic transformations so far have been permanent. As far as we know, you'll be a golem for the rest of your life."
The news hit Jon like a ton of bricks. A golem? Forever? This was worse than becoming some kind of animal person or mythical being. She was no longer even natural! So what did that make her? A robot? Undead? Nonliving?
As if picking up on her mental turmoil, the nurse tried to reassure her. "Now, keep in mind, Jon, that you are still a living creature. You just have an inorganic body. You'll still have your mind and emotions. Don't let your body define how you see yourself as a human being." Sitting next to her patient, she placed her three right hands on Jon's shoulder. "Look, I'm not going to tell you that I know what you're going through, because I don't. Most of the students out there don't either. But if you need someone to pour your troubles on, I'll be here. Got that?"
Jon nodded. She wanted to say thank you, but not having that option, she did the next best thing. She gave the nurse a hug.
When she finally ended the hug and prepared to leave the nurse's office, the woman tapped her on the shoulder. Jon turned to see her holding out a small dry erase board and marker. "I think you should take this. I usually use it for lists, but you probably need it more than I do. I can always buy another one. Oh, and your late pass is taped on the back side."
Jon graciously accepted the gift and went on to class. Finally alone with her thoughts, she reminded herself that this would all be temporary. After all, once she found Karyn and made another wish
She stopped. The stone!
Patting her pockets and rifling through her backpack, she realized that it was absent. Briefly, she recalled leaving it on her nightstand, and she rapped herself on the forehead. It seemed that she would have to wait a bit longer to escape her supposed fate. On the other hand, it could have been worse. At least, she knew where she left the thing. And what were the chances that someone would just walk into her room, touch a random rock, and make a wish?
