Jack was eager to get this game of change rolling. He was your typical rambunctious 9 year old boy, with shaggy, dirty blonde hair and a winning smile. Jack truly lived up to his name as he dabbled in almost every after-school activity available. He was a star on his minor baseball team, a decent swimmer, a enthusiastic painter, an avid reader, an adequate singer, and an all-round friendly face to everyone he met. It was no wonder he'd managed to gather four friends on such short notice. He was staying at his dad's place for the week, who was currently busy at work. Which meant it was the perfect time to play a game of magic without getting into trouble. However, not everyone agreed.
As Jack set up the board game, and handed out the game pieces, little Paul spoke up. "When's your daddy s'posed to get back home? My mommy says we always need adult superstition about". Paul was only seven years old, the youngest of the bunch. Jack considered him more of an acquaintance than a friend, but wherever his big brother went, Paul had to go as well, much to John's annoyance.
John nudged an elbow into Paul's chest and groaned "Ugh, it's supervision, and we're old enough to play a board game with no adults about. Don't be such a baby! Why did you invite my stupid brother anyway? He'll only ruin things like he always does". John was Jack's oldest friend, both in age and time they'd known each other, having grown up as next door neighbours. Despite John always trying to distance himself from his brother Paul, they shared a lot of similarities. Both were pale skinned with mousy brown hair and of average height for their age. Paul, however was burdened with glasses, something John had managed to avoid. Paul was also more athletically inclined, while John was more of a self-described gamer.
Jack smiled and replied "Like it or not, you're both my friends. And I thought this would be a great game to play with many people"
"What exactly is this thing anyway? I've never heard of it." said Ellis, while examining the box for details. Ellis was Jack's newest friend, having moved to the neighbourhood a year prior. He was nine years old with tanned skin and thick, black hair. While both of his parents came from Guatemala, Ellis was born in the USA and raised in the same complex as his extended family before finally moving to leafy suburbia. He was fluent in both English and Spanish, and spoke both frequently. He was a tough kid with a macho flair that often got him into trouble.
Bob butted in to ask "And you got it from a magic shop? Are you sure it's not cursed? I don't want to be cursed..." Bob was a timid child that Jack only knew from the library's young learner's reading group. He was ten years old, with plenty of freckles and curly red hair that could never quite be tamed. He seemed to fear everything to some degree, but mostly had a fear of the unknown. So to make up for it, he did his best to learn everything he could about everything.
Jack picked up the instructions manual and cleared his throat. "It's simple really. It's like every other board game in existence, but with a magic twist. We roll the dice and move the amount of spaces. Then that black circle in the middle of the board tells you how you change. If you land on a 'PLUS' space, you get older. If you land on a 'MINUS' space, you get younger. Rolling doubles with the dice means your current age will double or half depending on the space you land on. The spaces with question marks are special spots, where any kind of age related change could happen. There are magic defences to stop us from getting younger than one or older than ninety-nine, so no need to worry about things getting out of control."
Once he finished reading, Jack looked up to his friends. Nobody looked convinced. John looked around before asking "So this is real, right? It literally changes us?"
Jack replied "Well it had better change us, since I used up the rest of my birthday money on it!"
Bob shifted uncomfortably, then whined "But I don't wanna change, I'm perfectly comfortable staying exactly as I already am."
Ellis rolled his eyes. "That's dumb. You don't want to see what it's like to be an adult?"
"Not really. Besides, it could also make us babies again, and I don't want to be stuck in diapers! Do we have to play? Can't we do something normal like Smash Bros?"
Ellis rolled his eyes and muttered "No puedes convertirte en lo que ya eres..." He coughed loudly, then said "Don't be boring, the rest of us want to play, right?".Jack nodded enthusiastically, he did buy the game after all. Paul and John also nodded, a bit more apprehensively. "See? It's not like we'll be stuck as babies or adults. We... We won't, right Jack?"
Sensing the mood of the room, Jack reassured them. "Of course not! Once the game's over, we all turn back to normal. Well, except for the winner, who actually gets to choose how old they want to be forever... But that does mean you can be boring and go back to your normal age, if you truly want to".
This seemed to reassure Bob enough for him to sit back in his seat with a frown. "OK, I'll play one game... But if I end up a grandpa, I'm not talking to any of you ever again..."
Jack grinned and clapped his hands together. "Awesome! So, who wants to go first?"