"Still no answer," Mrs. Madison sighed, plunking the phone back down on the hook. "Whatever the Meadowses are up to, they don't want it interrupted."
Her husband shook his head. "I don't know what to think," he sighed. "On the one hand, everything that Biff described could be an honest mistake - I mean, it's not like other couples haven't had their children walk in on them. But on the other hand...shouldn't they have noticed their son's missing by now? Shouldn't they be concerned?"
His wife shrugged. "Who knows?" she said. "But if they really are neglecting their child, then what? What do we do with Biff? Or Sarah, for that matter?"
"I don't know," Mr. Madison replied. "I don't think either of them can look after themselves right now, but our finances are stretched thin enough with three children, thanks to this whole sun thing. Is there anyone we know who might be able to take them in?"
They thought for a bit. "Well, Karyn's parents might be able to take Sarah," Mrs. Madison suggested. "I think they've got a room free, and they're good people. But...if Biff doesn't have a stable home to go back to, I think maybe we ought to give her one. She's facing a big enough adjustment without having to go it alone, and if she has to grow back up as a girl, it might help to have three older 'sisters' to turn to."
Her husband nodded. "You might be right," he said. "But let's make sure we get all the facts before we go taking that kind of action."
Michael stared across the clearing at the dried-out husk atop the rotting log. "I still can't believe that's her," she said. "Or was her, or whatever. Are you sure she's all right?"
Jon looked up from her venison-noodle soup at the raptor-girl. "Not really," she said. "But it does more or less match up with what Zoe said about slime-mold life-cycles, so let's hope. Besides, if it could last three or four days, it's a little early to start worrying."
The raptor-girl nodded and returned to her own soup. It wasn't particularily good, being only boiled venison in instant ramen, but it was hot and at least somewhat savory. Michael didn't mind eating her meat raw, but she still enjoyed the things cooking did to it, and it was much warmer than body temperature anyway, which was a definite advantage on this cool night.
They sat there in relative silence for some time, saying nothing and focusing on their dinner, in a mutual attempt to block out what they were really thinking about. It was Michael who gave in and spoke their thought.
"Do you think we're going to stay like this?" she asked. "I mean, are we really going to spend the rest of our lives as these things?" She looked down at her lower arms, spindly things dangling from the shoulders of her dinosaur body, currently clasped in front of the fire to warm up, and turned her gaze back across close to a dozen feet of sinewy body and rigid tail. Was this her now?
Jon shrugged. She didn't want to mention the stone to someone she didn't know too well, and she wouldn't want to get someone's hopes up when she didn't even know whether she'd be able to reverse this. "I dunno," she said, brushing hair out of her face and back behind one antenna. "Unless something changes, I guess."
Michael nodded. "I guess you're right," she said. "It's just so weird to think about being a girl for the rest of my life. I mean, if your sister was right, then we can get pregnant, right? I can't even begin to comprehend that, let alone figure out how I feel about it."
"I try not to think about it," Jon said. For a kill-happy predator, Michael was quite a chatterbox. She almost felt annoyed, but she was too grateful for the company to really let it get to her.
The raptor-girl nodded. "I suppose," she said. "It is kind of pointless to worry about when I don't even like guys. I think. At least, I haven't felt attracted to guys since this happened. But then, I haven't felt attracted to girls either, so maybe I'm just kind of in limbo? What about you?"
Jon hadn't even thought about it until now. She didn't feel attracted to guys in theory, but then, she couldn't remember having been turned on by any girls since her change... "Uh, same here, I guess?" she stammered. For the first time since her change, she really did wonder what was happening to her.
