She felt the change within her, just to the side of her stomach. Her spleen.
Jennifer tried poking her side a few times. It felt... off.
Seriously! Her spleen! Her frickin' spleen changed into that of a wolf's. Jennifer didn't even realize there was much of a difference between a human-shaped spleen and a wolf-shaped spleen.
Well, she thought. That was certainly random.
"Careful, hon," said Paula, putting a hand onto her shoulder as Jennifer relaxed herself. "You don't want to get sick before homeroom."
"What?" she said.
With blond curly hair that looked from the 80s, Paula was from another fairly popular clique at school (at least with the boys), though Jennifer rarely mingled with her. Their paths only tended to cross during history, geometry, or during cheerleading when she spotted Paulina hiding behind the bleachers purchasing pot. "You looked like you were breaking out into sweats there." She smiled. "Holy shit, contacts or T&D?"
"What?" she blinked surprised.
"T&D," she said. "You know that old town curse thing. It's actually real. I got nailed with it two years ago. Unfortunately my mind was partially wiped so I don't know who ended up cursing me with a sex change and periods twice a month." She shrugged. "The problems that come with not picking one or the other, but I've made due." A few of the other girls in the bathroom sneered in disgust at her, one calling her "skank" and "lesbo" before stepping out. None of them were apparently believing her tale. In fact, this wasn't the first time Jennifer heard of the rumor that Paula was circulating this tale. It's just that Jennifer didn't believe in T&D up until now. "Give it up, Mindy," Paula called out after them. "Well... again. Not like you had any complaints when you asked to suck on my no-longer existing cock." Paula gave a satisfied smile as the last of them disappeared. "You're still standing here, so I'm guessing you just got nailed with it."
"Is...," Jennifer paused, trying to measure her words. "Is there a way to fix it?"
Paula took out a cigarette and lit up. "Count yourself lucky. It's just your eyes. I had to get used to a completely new wardrobe, figure out what fucking pads-with-wings are for, and," she paused to laugh. "It was also a shock the first time I had to pee. You'd be surprised how many boys don't realize the number of holes we're supposed to have down there."
"It's not just the eyes. It... keeps happening... in stages. I think it might reset every morning, but how severe it gets might vary from day to day."
The woman frowned. "Shit," she said as she took a drag. "At least my was over and done with instantly. Look, from what I figured out, you have the power right now, so long as you haven't T&D'ed somebody else. Find a few people you trust, and I MEAN trust. T&D one of them, give them a boon or something. It doesn't have to be a curse. Now, they can't T&D you. Little known rule. No immediate backsies. And yes, I tried. However, pass it does four or five steps, then it can come back to you... I think."
"Four or five?"
She nodded. "I tried to track it after I started getting used to things, but after Kevin Fertmen got expelled after shitting on Ms. Corry's desk at the end of last year, I lost track. But before that, our beloved school mascot was finally returned to a human form when her sister got cursed into only being able to write in Japanese."
"Wait. Kevin Fertmen. Wasn't that...?"
"Yep. Holly Masons dared him to do it right when he'd get caught." She sighed. "Massive magical potential and all that twit does is get some kid two days short of dropping out expelled. Who gave it to you? You remember?"
"Kyle Perkins," she said.
Paula frowned. "Odd. I never noticed any changes with that dork. Then again, it is possible to make others not notice the changes." The bell suddenly rang. Only five minutes left until homeroom. "I've got to go."
"Wait!" Jennifer said. "I could change you back into a boy."
Paula laughed. "No! Please don't. I like walking around like this. Also, the idiot failed to specify how much the periods would hurt, so I was able to get some drugs to ease that issue down. I'm actually having a better time like this. The boys like me, and if any of the girls are disgusted by me, then I know who to date." She paused for a moment. "Also I think the idiot fucked up the wording so I'd stay a teenage girl forever. I kinda like that part. Still, if you need help, I can get you in touch with some others who were also quietly nailed with it. If you need adjustments, we can get together."
"Others?"
She nodded as she headed towards the door. "I've brought together a handful of people who were cursed at some point. Luckily nobody did it to anybody else in the group, so there is no hard feelings in-house. Still, it would be nice to get one of the curses into the circle. It's a cool power. We just need to get a hold of it."
Jennifer quickly followed her out of the bathroom. "One of?"
Paula grinned as they headed down the hall towards their respective homerooms. "Yeah. I don't know the exact number, but I suspect that there are three T&D curses floating around town, including yours... at least. Never seems to leave the borders of town though. I can't be completely certain, but it seems like- oh shit." One of the times Paula glanced in Jennifer's direction, she stutter stepped and then did a double-take. At first Jennifer thought the warmth she was feeling was from her excitement at possibly finding help. She wasn't sure if she wanted to release this power or not, but she was now feeling like she was getting a leg up on things.
But now, her body was beginning another change right here in the halls, surrounded by tons of people walking by.