You grab a costume off the rack. It has a plaid shirt, jeans, boots, a wool cap, and a small hatchet. It shows a young man in 20's leering at something out of frame. "Huh, a lumberjack," you think but you quickly change your mind noticing the "axe" is only the size of your forearm. As you pick up the costume, you noticed that it also came with a padded suit which was a full-body leotard, but with padding attached to make it look like huge muscles. It looks like its meant for a college Halloween party, but since this was just to play along with your uncle you figure that you had might as well try it on.
You strip down, and slip into the muscle suit first. Glancing in the full-length mirror on the wall, you note how ridiculous you look. If the padding were real, you'd look like a huge bodybuilder. Sadly, being 14 you were still a few years from your adult height and the suit seemed to be made for a young adult, you chortled as you saw a huge, fake cock and balls dangling from the costume that you slip your own member into. As it is, you just look silly. "Weird" doesn't even begin to describe how you feel. Nonetheless, you're going to be with Uncle Jack for the entire month, so you had might as well humor him.
Next you pull on the jeans and the boots. The boots are too big, but the bodysuit has padded feet that seem to fit in the boots just fine. You pull on the plaid shirt and button it closed, stretching it tight over your fake pecs. You glance in the mirror again feeling foolish but having a little fun despite yourself.
The last thing that came with the outfit was a wet sponge. You took it out of the plastic wrap reading the instructions. You patted it on your face making a makeshift beard, then made mock chest and armhair... When you were done you looked... sad. You double checked the instructions, and looked at the guy in the picture on the front. you did everything right but it was definitely made for someone older than 14.
You presented yourself to Uncle Jack, oddly feeling proud at how awful you looked. "I thought you said you were a wizard? I imagined I would have looked better." you said jokingly.
He glanced up and stifled a laugh. "Sexy woodsman I see." With a big smile he explained, "So , what makes my costumes so special is that within an hour or so of wearing it, you start to feel more the part and much more comfortable pretending to be that character. In your case, you may start recalling any plant or animal facts you may have learned, and start feeling like you would be capable outdoors, you may remember how to put up a tent more easily or survive in the wild if you read a survival guide or something."
"Uh-huh, and when do I become a sexy 20 something college guy?" you asked, temporarily suspending your disbelief.
Without missing a beat, uncle replied, "In about 5-6 years, after working out, and going to college."
"No, ..." you clarified not realizing that he understood what you were getting at, " you claim to be magical, why don't you transform people into the costume they choose?"
Uncle Jack stared earnestly, unsure where to begin explaining the intricate levels of complexities tied to reshaping the fabric of reality, and with each level of complexity a whole slew of moral issues arise.
Uncle Jack decided to explain the two simplest concepts and leave it at that. "Well, first, you know energy isn't created or destroyed, it is just changed. Magic follows the same rules as physics. Transforming reality takes a lot of energy to control the process. Transforming thoughts, memories, and emotions is actually so much easier. Second, the weirder you get, the harder it is to do the right thing... Lets say you know that wearing that outfit will turn you into an adult and you choose to do it. Lets pretend your parents don't mind and support the decision, in that case its okay. But what if someone is tricked into wearing it, imagine if you got into a tutu as a joke for a photobooth, suddenly 8th grader you is gone and instead you are now a 5 year old girl who loves dancing."
You shifted uncomfortably noticing for the first time how still the air was and that everything in the store was plastic or concrete, it made your skin crawl.