Kaitlyn stared into the mirror and studied Jacob's fifteen-year-old features. Clutched tightly in her hand was the Toroid, a bit of metal that, had anyone looked at, would have thought it to be a bit of junk, likely broke off a furnace or old boiler, that had the oxidized look of copper starting to turn green. She was unsure if the thing was made of copper, nor did she care. What mattered was that it worked and did what she knew it would do.
A series of deep breathes and she prepared herself. Concentrating, her mind gradually slipped into the state it needed to be in to activate the Toroid, to cause it to work its pseudomagical properties over her. Still staring into the mirror, she formed her thoughts to command the ring, explaining what it was she wanted from it, what she desired and wished. Knowing it would only transform her and nothing else, that her thoughts and action would likely switch to suit her new life, Kaitlyn did not waver from her course, figuring, as she did, that in the morning she would have a fair bit of explaining to Jacob's parents.
"To which I already have an account to give them as to why," she muttered, then, realising her concentration slipped, she struggled a moment to regain it before finally her mind slipped back into the mental state it needed to be in as she absently climbed onto the sink.
Her eyes riveted on the reflective device, she mentally formed the command of what she needed, what she wanted, what she wished for, from the Toroid. And like before, there was no indication of any change occurring. One minute she was looking at fifteen-year-old Jacob and the next she was looking at Jacob when he was eight. Only, there was slight differences that Kaitlyn could see and knew would be there.
Gone were the hint of pudge that had dominated him for his entire life, as he now looked like a boy who'd shed his baby fat and was growing up to be a skinny man. His skin, which had had always a slightly doughy look to it, now had more of a healthy shade of peach, with the barest hint of white in some areas, like the tip of his nose and ears. The hair that had been greasy looking \all his life, something that had gotten worse the moment he had hit puberty, now looked poofed and vibrant. Seeing all of this and more, Kaitlyn decided that what was once the beginnings of the stereotypical appearances of a geek was now the outward appearance of a boy who could very well grow up to be a jock, though she knew this wasn't possible, as her mind was still one that was closer to being a nerd, a geek or a mixture of both.
Satisfied with what she saw, she set the Toroid on the sink, leaned closer and studied her eight-year-old male self. Searching for any hint that would indicate the husky boy Jacob had been, and not seeing any, Kaitlyn abruptly froze when she heard something. Scared, not ready for Jacob's family to see the new her, she slid off the sink and shut off the bathroom light. Standing in the darkness, listening to the house, she swore silently as she thought she heard someone moving about. Quickly, she exited the bathroom and tiptoeing down the hall, the oversize pyjamas she had on causing her to stumble a couple times, she headed back to Jacob's bedroom. There, she shut the door, scurried across the room and climbed into Jacob's bed.
Sanguine in what she did, Kaitlyn wriggled around as she shucked off the bottoms and underwear she was wearing. Lying in only what was now an oversized short-sleeve shirt, she stared up at the ceiling. Her mind leaping from one idea to another, she wondered what Jacob and Emily were doing. She considered how long it would take before their minds started to accept the bodies they were in. That, if Jacob was in Emily's, or Kaitlyn's, body he'd start to believe he was a girl, whilst if Emily was in body of the thirteen-year-old girl, she would start to believe she was so, which Kaitlyn knew would make it all the more difficult for them to switch.
"And if we did swap, they'd resist. All part of reality cementing itself in place," she mused as she contemplated how it wouldn't be impossible for another body swap and then wondered how long before her mindset began to accept that she was a boy.
"An eight-year-old boy," she corrected and turning over onto her side, she snuggled deeper under the covers.
Sleep eventually claiming her, Kaitlyn dreamed. Images that seemed closer to memories came to her of playing with Emily, only, there was something off. Before she could figure out what, the faces of people familiar, yet at the same time seemed foreign, came to her then faded. She dreamed of birthdays, Christmas', which caused her confusion, as she thought her family never really celebrated the holiday Hallowe'en and trick-or-treating, and again, something was off about her costume choices. Fragmented, her mind leapt from one set of dreams to the next, all feeling like they had actually happened to her, yet at the same time all had the sensation like they didn't. And when she awoke in the morning, it was to confusion, as she couldn't figure out, at first, if she was Kaitlyn or Jacob.