"Wait," Jon said, "are you...are you sure you're going to be okay? I mean, if they're really as crazy as that, who knows what they'll be like when the sun finally gets them..."
The tree-man chuckled. "As you've seen, it's difficult enough to find me when you know I'm here. I don't think that they'll have so much as a chance of discovering me, especially since they won't likely be thinking straight. But thank you for your concern."
Jon nodded. "It's about ten, Zoe. We should get going. It was very nice to meet you, sir."
"Wait," Zoe said. "You said you think there's a force driving our changes? Are you saying God did this? That he intended for Jon and I to become...these?"
Father Maxwell smiled sadly. "Certainly many people feel that way," he said. "But...well, that's looking at it from the wrong direction. God is not bound by time. It was always known that the sun would change, as it was known that you would be exposed to the light; therefore, it was always part of His plan. But I don't believe that the Lord willed this on you without just cause."
Jon frowned. "Do you mean that we deserved it?" She cringed inwardly; wasn't it kind of true that she did? After all, this whole mess was her fault...even if she hadn't intended anything like this.
"I don't know, child. I don't know what you have or haven't done in life; that is between you and God. It could be that this is punishment for your deeds, but I doubt it; I don't think a child like you could have done something so wrong as to merit being stripped of their own body as retribution. I believe it's likelier that the Lord has brought you into this place because this is where you ought to be at this time in your life. Whether He intends for you to remain as you are, or to return to being a human man, God knows what the future will hold. But that is only what I believe; if you need to know, you should ask Him yourself."
"Huh." Jon wasn't quite sure what to make of that. And...wait, he knew she was a guy? Well, he did get their names, but she thought he'd have been a bit harsher on someone who was the wrong sex. But...well, that wasn't a very kind conclusion to jump to, she supposed. "But...what if the sun is like this because of something we did?" She was hardly going to confess to having caused it to happen herself, especially with Zoe around.
The pastor smiled. "As I said: God is not bound by time as we are. He knew both cause and effect for all of this before the universe even existed. If human action did cause this, He has already made His plans around that fact."
"Hmm." She really didn't know what to think now. "Um, anyway, we should probably get going."
Father Maxwell smiled. "You have a safe trip, then. Please don't hesitate to visit if you ever have more questions."
Zoe and Jon smiled. "Thanks," the slug-girl said.
They returned to the car and loaded the camping gear back up. The drive home was pretty quiet; both sisters were still kind of confused by their conversation. At any rate, it wasn't long before they pulled into their own driveway. The concrete felt rough compared to the wet leaves in the wood or the soft grass of the cemetery, but the mucous layer on Jon's foot was thick enough to keep anything from getting chafed.
Jon and Zoe unloaded everything back into the garage, and then went inside. As they stepped (or rather, slid) into the entryway, they were met by a little girl with blue hair. She visibly started when she saw them, and not-too-subtly backed away. "Who're you?" she asked.
Jon regarded her curiously. "We live here," she said. "Who are you?"
"I'm B...I'm B..." The little girl sighed. "I'm Becka," she said.
"She was Biff Meadows, girls," Mrs. Madison said, stepping into the entryway but being careful to stay clear of the light. "She's staying with us now; her parents are...kind of indisposed." Their mother smiled. "It's good to see you. Come here!"
She gave Jon a hug, and then embraced Zoe so tightly that she was half-enveloped by her daughter's changed body. "I'm so glad you're all right," she said. "It...it didn't hurt you, did it?"
Zoe smiled. "No worse than usual," she said. Noting her mother's puzzled expression, she clarified. "That is, I figured it out: the fruiting process is what I have for a period in this form."
"Oh, my," her mother said. "You poor thing; that's going to be a bit inconvenient."
Zoe nodded. "Yeah. Still, I'm just happy it's nothing worse." Like Sarah, she thought, cringing. "And...well, you should know, this is my 'real' shape now. That mostly-human look at first was kind of a coincidence."
Mrs. Madison looked her daughter up and down. Aside from the translucent orange color, Zoe looked much like any other fourteen-year-old girl did unclothed, except for her lack of visible nipples or genitalia, and the way her legs lost definition mid-shin and joined together into a sort of puddle at her feet. She smiled; as always, Zoe reminded her very much of her sister Diane. "That's fine, dear," she said. "I'm just glad you're safe and sound. You two must be hungry..."
Jon nodded emphatically. Her mother smiled; if Zoe looked like Diane, Jon was somehow the spitting image of herself at that age; even three weeks later, she was still amazed by the resemblance. (Mikey, on the other hand, was all Mr. Madison, even as a girl.) "Well," she said, "we have some leftover waffle batter from breakfast, and I can put on some coffee..."
The look in Jon's eyes told her she'd hit home. "Right," she said. "Strong coffee. Come on, have a seat and I'll get you some breakfast."
Jon smiled wearily, and Zoe grinned. It was good to be home.
Their father was just as glad to see them, and they sat and talked over coffee as Jon ate breakfast. Zoe wasn't quite sure what to do at first, but placed a piece of waffle in her mouth as an experiment and tried to swallow as she always had. She could taste it just fine, at least. It travelled down to her abdomen; she didn't seem to have a stomach, but it came to rest about where it would have been. The slime-girl felt kind of embarrassed when she looked down to see that her food could be seen through her abdomen; it wasn't clearly visible, but there was a dark splotch somewhere in her middle. This...was kind of awkward. Still, her body began to break it down, so it seemed to work as food. Shrugging, she joined in the belated breakfast with gusto.
"Oh," Mr. Madison said. "Not to pressure you or anything, but they're starting school back up. I think you should go; there's no sense falling further behind than you have to."
Jon was taken aback. "I, uh...school?"
Her father nodded. "About half the faculty are changed, so they're going to split the staff: night classes for the students who haven't been transformed, and regular school hours for the rest."
Jon and Zoe both frowned; neither of them were quite sure they wanted to go back as they were now. Zoe was sure her friends would be okay with her new form, and she didn't really care what the rest of the student body thought, but who knew how they'd treat her?
Jon, on the other hand, was less concerned about mistreatment by the other students and more worried that her friends would be too friendly, now that she was a girl - an attractive girl, as much as she hated to admit it. Granted, she didn't really have any really close friends besides Karyn, but if her male acquaintances weren't freaked out by the fact that she had been a guy, it was possible they'd be hitting on her...that would be freaky, and even worse...what if she liked it? She couldn't bear to think about it.
But...both girls knew that look. Their father was pretty low-key, but he was quite adamant about his children's education. They were going to be attending, that was pretty much certain.
