Nick regained a bit of hope, but was still very worried. "Is there nothing else you can do? You did mention something about adjusting the glove's sensitivity..."
Mr. Fisk nodded "yes, but that was before I knew it had bonded to you. I'm not sure if I can do it now, but I may be able to try. It will be tricky, and I can't promise it won't hurt. Also, remember what I said about magical interactions, you never know, side effects can occur. All in all, I don't think I would recommend it. Otherwise, there are a few other things I may be able to do."
"I can give you a potion that will make you more adapted to your current form. I gather from your grooming that you were a man. No, no, don't be offended, "he added, seeing Nick flush. "I don't mean to suggest that there's anything wrong with your appearance, but to the trained eye you do lack a certain... feminine touch? Especially contracted with how you looked last night. A woman who looked like you did then would not normally present herself in public as you have now. And as to the other part of that, don't worry, you're not the first male I've seen in female form, or vice versa, and there are different reasons each time."
"But this potion, " Nick said, trying to change the subject "what do you mean?"
"Well, you won't forget who you are or were, or even act very different. It will just make you able to react and do everyday things as if you had always been a woman. In fact, the medallion already does this to an extent, but the potion would merely help you 'blend in' with female social norms."
"I don't know..." said Nick
"If it is true that you're stuck, I presume that a legal identity would be a problem? I have a bowl that collects the identities of people who drop out of the timeline due to magical mishaps. You simply reach in draw one out. There's little control over what you get, but it will be something appropriate to your form. You would get the legal identity of some other young woman who no longer needs it."
"Drop out of the timeline? " Nick repeated, wondering again if magic wasn't best left undiscovered.
"Yes, well, these things happen often enough in the magical community... dabblers mostly, who stumble onto something powerful and don't know enough to take proper safety measures." Mr Fisk stared pointedly at Nick "as I'm sure you can understand. In any case, they simply don't exist anymore, at least in our world, though some end up in alternate timelines or back in Old Earth. Or even Proto-Earth if they're particularly unlucky." He saw Nick's expression "So cheer up! At least you didn't unmake yourself!"
"I suppose also that there is someone else in our timeline walking around with that form, yes? I have a ring that will allow you to make minor physical transformations. It can't make you male, but it can make you a couple of inches shorter or taller, change your eye or hair or skin color, alter your figure a bit, and yes, make some facial changes. You could easily use it to look like someone else. Of course, it magic is relatively weak, and the medallion would certainly override its effects, and since it can only be used once per lunar month, I don't recommend using it right away, at least until you've seen what the medallion's effects on you will be."
"Right, " Nick said. "but that does sound pretty useful... I don't know if Megan would want a twin running around town."
"Of course, I can ask around in the magical community if anyone knows of any other way around this, but that has its own risk." Seeing Nick's confusion, he explained "As I said, the medallion is quite powerful, and not everyone is a professional and dare I say, as scrupulous as I. Some unsavory people might get wind of it and try to get it for themselves. Once I let it get out that I know where it is, it's only a matter of time, I'm afraid, before someone comes looking for it. My best bet would be to claim that it has been lost again, and hope that no one questions this. Given its history, that's not at all implausible."
"Maybe... if you think you can sell that story... but wait, how come you don't want it for yourself?" Nick asked, suddenly a little suspicious.
Mr. Fisk chuckled "Ha! My dear lady, er... as such... The fabled and mystical Medallion of Zulo is one of those things that I have long ago labelled 'MTTTW', or 'More Trouble Than They're Worth'. It has a history of being difficult to control, and it has a reputation of seeming to want to become lost, hence my precautionary warnings to you earlier. Of course, while it's never really shown any signs of actual intelligence, not all of what it does can be explained or accomplished through traditional magical formulae. I personally believe it has some rudimentary quasi-intelligence, comparable to an insect or even a simple form of fish, able to recognize when it would be 'inconvenient' to become lost, and then somehow, through unknown means, manipulating probabilities to allow for the best chance of such a loss coming to pass." Nick became even more worried.
"But, as I said, it can only enhance existing probabilities, not create them. Being very careful and taking many precautions will minimize this chance as much as possible. In the end, though, I would bet on it moving on sooner or later. The only good way I know of making sure that doesn't happen at a bad time is to choose the time yourself "“ find some form you like, then sell it or give it away. If the medallion senses that it will soon move on to a new vic-... possessor, it will not force things itself."
"Well," said Nick, "if I can get back to being myself I think I may do just that. This whole magic thing seemed cool at first, but like you said, it's shaping up to be more trouble than it's worth. I can't believe I may be stuck as my girlfriend."
Mr. Fisk nodded "Well, as I said, I do have a few options for you. Do you know how you want to proceed?"
