Mike had a good laugh at the "mystic powers" revealed by the note. He shoved the medallion back in the box, he had nowhere else to put it at the time. He shoved it in a drawer and forgot about it for several months.
Mike met Emily. He loved her ferocious attitude towards life. They got along tremendously well. They became an exclusive couple fairly quickly much to their other friend's jealousy. They worked really hard to find time to do things together. The next semester they had almost all of the same classes. She was taking a woman's studies program he was not. They loved to argue about it.
"As the quote unquote 'weaker sex' I will have to fight harder for everything I get in life. Men have it so easy" Emily submitted.
"Whoa! Girl! I know you can't believe that. Women have all the real power. I've always assumed the 'weaker sex' thing was a misnomer propagated by women." Mike blurted.
"So suffrage was a big act?" She said indignantly.
"Nah, women just realized men were taking the role given them more seriously than they should and had to be put in their place again."
"You're lucky I love you, you idiot" She kissed him and began walking away, she quickly turned, "You're buying me breakfast tomorrow for that."
"Okay." He smiled and walked home.
Over the next few weeks the argument grew. Then one night it was as if the medallion called out to him.
He pulled it from the drawer and thought, "If it works then I can prove my point and we can get past this."
A few nights later they stumbled in drunk.
"I think I have a way of proving it if you are up to the challenge." he said pulling out the small box and waving it in front of her. He pulled out the note and handed it to her.
"Are you suggesting we swap bodies?"
"Why not?"
"I'm game. It's about time for you to understand the trials of being a woman."
"I bet you that you find it more difficult being a man than I do being a woman."
"One shtipulation", she slurred,"We have to break up publicly until we switch back. Otherwise you won't fully know how vulnerable a woman can be."
"Okay, but you have to date some girl for at least 2 weeks. If you can get a date that is." He smirked. "Oh, and it can't be one of your girlfriends, unfair advantage."
"You then have to date a guy for at least as long. No buddies."
"Ugh."
"Oh, like I want to date a girl. This is for science"
"No sex!"
"Oh god no."
"So, what are the stakes."
"Loser is the first to want to switch back. Winner gets the loser as a personal slave for a month."
"I'm in. Since we take the same classes for the most part it won't be too hard to carry our courses. And you can catch up on women's studies from my red journals."
They wrote up the terms of the bet and signed it placing it in the drawer.
If they weren't drunk they may have been more cautious but a few minutes later they had each reached for the medallion and kissed. The changes in their bodies made them pull away quickly.
Emily began peeling away her clothes as they got tighter on her.
Mikes clothes loosened to the point his pants were held only by his position.
A few minutes later the changes had stopped. Mike was now in a copy of Emily's body and Emily in a copy of Mike's. The process had sobered them both. They stared at each other as they exchanged clothes.
Emily's clothes had some small tears and her stockings had run quite badly so Mike had to go without which was more or less fine with him.
They were silent for a long period of time.
Mike broke the silence "This may have been a bit impulsive" Emily's voice coming out shocked them both.
"Uh, yeah" Emily said in Mike's barritone.
"We can change back after lunch tomorrow if you want." Mike said shyly.
"That still leaves us with two classes for tomorrow."
"Well, only one for you."
"That's right. Women's studies. Your reaction should be fun."
They sat for a short time.
"I guess I should take you back to my place." Emily said.
"I'm fine"
"It's not safe for a young lady to walk that far at night"
"I guess so."
Emily walked Mike back to her apartment off campus. They were mostly silent on the trip. Mike felt cold in the skirt. Emily noticed and pulled her in tight as they walked. Mike felt strangely safe but a devilish twinge of feeling right about what he had been arguing. also Her roommate was asleep. Emily told her goodnight. There was an awkward feeling they felt strange not kissing goodbye but they also felt strange about the idea of kissing in these new bodies.
Mike entered Emil's bed room. He inhaled the perfume of it. He took off her clothes and crawled into her bed. The cool sheets made her body tingle and she fell asleep.
