Authors note - bit of a long exposition chapter here, please bear with me on this one
Lorna froze for a moment, hearing her old name seemed to bring back a flood of memories she hadn’t even realised she’d forgotten. Of course she wasn’t a middle-aged woman, she used to be a teenage boy. It had only been a matter of days since he first woke up with his own mother’s vagina between his legs. He put a hand to his head as two sets of memories and thoughts clashed for moment, causing him some discomfort. Ruby was staring at him, her eyes seemingly boring into his thoughts. Jon’s old identity clawed its way to the forefront of his mind and the mild pain receded.
“Wha…how…” he groaned, suddenly feeling very self-conscious in his new womanly body. He shifted uncomfortably, feeling a small bubble of panic rising in him. Ruby’s face softened into a kind smile, and she sat back in her chair.
“Stay calm Jon, I’ll explain everything” she said softly. Almost instantly his anxiety seemed to melt away. He took a deep breath and settled in his seat.
“It’s funny what one errant wish can do isn’t it?” Ruby said thoughtfully as she looked around the garden, “nearly every single one of these people used to be someone else entirely.” She added as she took a sip of her drink.
“How do you know about that?” Jon said in a low whisper.
“Oh I know a lot of things Jon” Ruby said with a smirk, “but don’t worry, I’m not about to out you” she added pleasantly.
“Who are you?” Jon asked. Ruby chuckled and took another sip.
“Now that’s the question isn’t it” she said with a wink, “I thought I was a bit on the nose when chose my name, but apparently not” she said with a shrug.
“Chose your name?” Jon replied, a little confused, “what do you mean?”
“Think about it” Ruby said sweetly, “I’ll wait”. Jon sat there for moment, and thought about what she said.
“Ruby Grant” he muttered to himself, “and she knows about wishes. Ruby, Grant, wishes….holy shit!” He gasped loudly!
“The penny drops” Ruby chuckled,
“You can’t be!” Jon said in disbelief, “The stone? How?”
“I can, and I am, in a sense” Ruby said sitting forward again, “it’s all thanks to that very open-ended wish you made. Tell me Jon, have you ever wondered where the stones power came from?”
“Not really if I’m honest” Jon replied, feeling a little embarrassed at this fact.
“I’ll start from the beginning then” Ruby smiled, “since the world began there have been unseen spirits existing alongside mortals. Many of them are charged with protecting the balance of life, you know, your standard elementals and so on.” She paused to take another sip of her drink.
“Mostly their power is limited to whatever task they’ve been charged with. However, there are some spirits who held the greatest power, that of creation!” She said pridefully.
“I’m guessing you were one of them?” Jon chimed in.
“Very clever, yes I was” Ruby continued, “we were charged with the very fabric of reality, watching over it and controlling it how we saw fit. Occasionally our work would be noticed by mortals and we were eventually branded as Angels, Demons, genies, all sorts really. Naturally, humanity started to covet our power, and started seeking ways to control us. As such most of us decided to go into hiding” she said sadly.
“But not you?”
“No, I loved the mortals, I could see the good in them, but my peers decided that my continued presence amongst them was a bad idea. I was given an ultimatum, either withdraw with the rest of them, or face exile and any consequences that came with it. Naturally I chose exile.”
“Why?”
“I’m not sure any more. Like I said, I lived humanity and I wanted to live amongst them as best I could. After a few centuries I came across a man who could not only see me, but also claimed to be able to help me become a mortal myself.” She said this last part with a little bitterness in her voice.
“Sounds too good to be true”
“Oh it was, he had somehow found a way to tap into remnants of power we had left behind, what you would call ‘Magic’. Using my own kinds power against me, he trapped me in that stone, forever having to use my abilities to serve the whims of those who held me, until someone wished for me to become mortal”
“Oh wow Ruby, that sounds awful! I had no idea you were sentient” Jon said sympathetically.
“Nobody did, that was the whole point, his twisted little idea. All the while I was trapped, still longing to join humanity myself. Eventually your grandfather found me, barely used my talents besides improving his quality of life, and then I got passed down to you.” She said happily, “and when you made that wish, I saw my chance. I’ve gotten pretty good at making use loopholes over the years.” Headed with a sly pride.
“Ok, I get that, but why change everyone like this?” Jon asked.
“I was wondering when you led ask that. To put it bluntly, all those years trapped in the stone have drained my essence, I managed to make myself semi-mortal, but over time I could feel myself fading away. Thats when I understood that I needed to find a vessel for my spirit to inhabit. I didn’t want to steal a body, so I came up with another solution.”
“Swapping everyone’s lives and genders?” Jon asked incredulously.
“Not quite, I used my limited reserves to peer into your life and those around you, learning what would make them happy. Unfortunately in my weakened state I couldn’t make it instant, hence the gradual change” she said sadly.
“Make me happy? How is any of this making anybody happy?” Jon asked.
“Haven’t you always wanted to be treated more like an adult? Laura always wanted to be the main breadwinner, Karyn was already regretting some of her choices and wanted to start again, same with Simon, Zoe envied your position as eldest sibling, need I go on?” Ruby replied.
“Things crazy,” Jon muttered, “why not make me an adult man then?” Ruby looked away in embarrassment for a moment.
“Over the years” she said, “I’ve learned how to read a person, to see how good or bad they are, and with you, I saw the kind of person I’d love my mother to be” she said blushing.
“Your what?!?” Jon gasped.
“My mother, that part was a little selfish on my behalf. But you can’t deny you’ve been feeling happier with Laura and Sarah over the last couple of days. I told you I need a vessel, a newly created life. I have a proposal for you, if you’re willing to hear me out?” She said hopefully
