Questions as to whether Megan might be a witch, how all that happened had occurred, ways in which you could get back to the women's restroom and through the grate, plus hundreds of others things chased themselves around your mind as you are taken to what you could only assume was your new home. Approaching a series of apartment complexes you thought looked familiar, you were shaken from your train of thoughts when Megan said, "I had fun today. Did you?" to which you nod shyly then listen as she told you, "Maybe tomorrow we could do something else?"
Unsure of what the old girl was talking about, you quietly respond with an, "Okay," as she lead you into the building and toward the lifts.
Up on the fifth floor, Megan escorted you down the hall to apartment 513. Wondering what her part in all this was, returning to the idea that she was somehow responsible for you being changing into a girl, you watch as she knocked and a familiar elderly woman answers. It suddenly coming to you that the woman is your gram grams, you try to shake off such a notions by telling yourself, "She's not. She's Melissa's gram grams," which only confuses you, as you find yourself admitting that, for the time being, you are Melissa.
Megan and gram grams talk quietly a bit and as they do this, you barely listen to what they are saying. Instead, you find yourself returning to the notion that Megan was somehow responsible and wondering how she managed to pull it off, as you find it too much of coincidence that she was the girl you turned down and now you were a girl in her temporary care. Feeling like you were missing something, you absently wave goodbye when Megan said, "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" and entering the apartment, it barely registered when gram grams announced, "I am going to watch my programmes. Why don't you go play in your room?"
The idea of such a concept, playing in a girl's bedroom, disturbed you, especially on natural such a thing felt. Confused by these conflicting feelings, she nod and respond quietly with a, "Yes, ma'am," and after gram grams kisses you on the forehead, you drift through the apartment, knowing exactly where to go, even though you are certain that, until today, you have never been here.
Inside what was clearly a girl's bedroom, you gaze at the Hello Kitty comforter and sheet set covering the bed, the plush set up next to the pillows, the white dresser with pastel pink knobs, the toy box labeled "Melissa's toys" the pocket door, partially open to a closet, and after a few more minutes of staring at how girly and feminine everything looked, you step in. Feelings of comfort, safety, of belonging, among other things washed over you and crawling on the bed, you hug a twelve inch Hello Kitty plush close. Lying on your side, you continue to study the bedroom, thinking about all that happened.
After a moment, you roll over and slide off the bed. Adjusting your dress, you hug Kitty tighter and reason out, "Magick did this, magick can undo it," but are at a loss as to how it was done and thus how you could undo it.
Not really thrilled with the notion of being a girl, wanting only one thing, you walk over to the toy box and without thinking about it, you take out a bunch of doll clothes. Sitting down on the floor, you proceed to strip Kity and redress her in something you actually thought looked not only pretty, but also very cute. Thoughts of having a pretend tea party until you could sort out how to undo the mess you were in crossed your mind and for a split second, you are repulsed by doing something only a little girl would do. But then, realising that you just redressed a plush and did so in a way that made you think of a mother helping her child put clean clothes on, you decide that, for the moment, pretending to be a girl couldn't hurt.
The afternoon slipped by and before you knew it, your gram grams called you in for dinner. The meal passed rather uneventfully as the two of you spent the time talking about what each of you did that day. Afterward, you helped the best you could with cleaning up the meal, then sat down and watched a couple of television programmes with your gram grams. Before you knew it, you were pulling on a pair of pyjamas that you thought looked like the footy type, only they didn't have the foot part of them. Zipping up the white pyjamas, you barely noted the My Little Pony theme pictured on the front as gram grams tucked you in, read you a bedtime story, then left as you started to doze.
Thoughts that could have been either dreams or memories chased themselves around your head as your now younger mind tried to sort out what happened, how it happened and if being a girl might not be such a bad thing. The last bit you eventually decided you were adamantly against, as you were certain you were supposed to be a boy and slipping out of bed, you stood in your room, staring into the darkness. Listening to the silent apartment, you decided that your best course of action was to try and run away, and thus hopefully get back to the beach. Tiptoeing across your room, missing completely that you had no idea where the beach was, you slipped out of your room and started down the hallway.
Scared by not only what you planned to do, but also that you were essentially running away from home, leaving gram grams alone to worry, you almost change your mind and go back to bed. But then, telling yourself, "No. I am not a girl. I cannot be a girl. This isn't my life," you continue down the hall.
Silently, you creep toward the front door and as you pass a cold air register built into the wall, you catch out of the corner of your eye something appeared off. Stopping, you turn you attention fully toward the grate and peer at it. Cocking your head to the side, you squat down and inch closer. The dark making it kind of hard to see, you thought that you could see something on the other side that wasn't the normal metal duct work. Reaching out, sure that it would be screwed in place, you are surprised when the whole thing flops forward and hits the wood flooring with a solid thunk.
Frightened that gram grams would certainly come to investigate the sound, you almost backpedal away and run back to your run. But, managing to keep yourself glued to the spot, you wait a moment. When it appeared that gram grams hadn't awoken, you duck walk closer and peer inward. Seeing what looked like the same space your crawled through between the two bathrooms, you noticed also that, faintly, you can see a dim light on the other side. Taking a series of deep breathes, you glanced toward your gram grams bedroom and feeling torn, you eventually whisper, "I'm sorry, gram grams," before pushing the grating out the way, lying down and wiggling into what you quickly discover is metal duct work.
The way forward as tight as you remember, you wonder briefly if you'll find your shirt and, if you do, by putting it on you could go back to being your old self. Not finding it, but not surprised you didn't, you sneeze at the dust that has built up as you continue to make your way through. The way loosening up as you go, you noticed that something was off about the metal duct work after a bit. But, not wanting to dwell on it too much, you pressed onward until you reached the next grating. Hope springing to mind that maybe you could finally put all this behind you, that something on the other side might allow you to go back to being your old self, you squirm about before being able to find a decent enough footing to put your hands on the grate. Starting to push on it, you are instantly dismayed to it shan't budge.