Dion still couldn't wrap his mind around what he was seeing. Unsure if Holly knew of how she had changed, he watched his sister flee to her room and smiling, he was tempted to follow after to either see what had caused her to run off or to try to strike up a bargain about the amulet and its use. Not wanting to leave his sister stuck as some barnyard animal for as long as she had planned to turn him into a girl, or a cat or a dog, as he recalled she had written something about it in the notebook, Dion only wanted to teach her a lesson.
What that lesson was, he wasn't too sure, though he was certain it was important and had to do with forcing other people to be something they didn't want to be. The kitchen phone ringing and unsure where his mom was, his dad was working the neighbour's farm, he decided confronting Holly would have to wait as he headed for the kitchen. Picking up the receiver on the third or fourth ring, he answered, "Boucher residence, this is Taylor," he swallowed his disliked that he was still had to use a girl's name to address himself.
"Taylor," the quiet, feminine voice of his aunt immediately responded, followed by, "How are you sweetie?"
A shrug and Dion told her, "I'm fine," and knowing she was probably looking for his mom, her sister, he asked, "You looking for mom?" to which she asked if he could put her on.
The backdoor opening as he was about to explain he didn't know where she was and seeing it was his mom, coming in from the garden, Dion instead replied, "Sure," then, "Hold on, she's just coming in from outside," and as his mom kicked off her shoes, then reached for the phone, he handed it to her, saying, "It's aunt Michelle," as he did.
His mom took the phone and as she greeted the other woman, Dion drifted away and into the living room. Flopping down on the couch, legs over the arm, he gazed up at the ceiling wondering what Holly was doing. Thinking about going upstairs and getting the amulet from where he'd hidden it and then going to confront his sister, make her help find a way to change him back with the agreement that he'd change her back if she did, Dion found his mind drifting and as he listed to the hushed conversation his mom was having, but not able to pick up anything, he found himself wondering why aunt Michelle had called.
He'd only seen his mother's sister a handful of times. And most of those times, she had left, angry at his mom about something, usually about his mom's choice in whom she had married, how she could have been so much more, and his mom crying because aunt Michelle had rubbed her success in his mother's face. Curious to know if this what his aunt called about, "Or if she is planning another visit," Dion got up off the couch. Heading for the kitchen, under the guise of wanting to get something to drink, he caught, "I'm sorry Paul left you," followed by, "Yeah, it probably was for the best."
Uncertain who Paul was, as Dion knew his aunt wasn't married, he got himself a glass of water and sat the table. Wanting to hear more of who Paul was, he was disappointed when his mom instead asked, "How are Bridgette and Sophia taking everything that has happened," followed by, "That bad, huh?" and confused even more, Dion finished the glass of water, but didn't take it to the sink.
His mother continuing her conversation, Dion listened, but found he couldn't make heads or tails of most of what he was hearing, though he was about to grasp that something had happened to his aunt, which led to Paul leaving, and that it had an effect of two people named Sophia and Bridgette. None of this making sense, he was tempted to remain right were he was, but then his mom turned around and upon seeing him, told him, "Taylor, honey, why don't you go outside to play," and leaning back against the wall, she said into the phone, "No, I'm still here," and knowing he wouldn't get a chance to hear any more, Dion put his glass in the sink and headed out of the kitchen, then upstairs.
The need to talk to Holly, he felt, more important than listening to his mom talk to aunt Michelle, Dion paused at the top of the steps. Looking at his sister's bedroom door, hearing her move around inside, he was tempted to go knock on the door. But, at the last moment, he headed down the hall toward his room.
Inside, he closed the door and stared at the slightly messy girl's bedroom. Disliking how comfortable, how right, it felt, he knew that his mom would tell him to pick up the room when she saw it. Thinking he should get the jump on doing that before she complained, he decided to deal with that later as he drifted over to where he had hidden the Amulet of Zulo. Thinking about the broken harness, wondering what sort of animal it had been from, thinking that, more than likely, it had been for a goat as he thought about how he'd seen that Holly's eyes were now grey and had those weird horizontal slits goat's had, whilst her teeth, which he had noted were only on the lower part of her mouth, looked off, he almost reached down and pulled up the floorboard.
"Maybe I should wait until I talk to Holly," he muttered and turning away, he headed for his bed, were he flopped down. Feeling the amulet was safe for moment, knowing that the harness, which he'd tossed out the window after he used it, was safe back in the barn, he stared up at the ceiling for a moment before sitting up.
Again, he considered collecting the Amulet of Zulo from the hiding spot, but at last second changed his mind and instead left his room. Back outside in the hallway, thoughts bouncing from one thing to the next, he started down the hall, prepared to knock on Holly's bedroom door and have it out with her. Reaching his sister's room, he stopped and had raised his hand when he heard from somewhere downstairs his mom calling, "Taylor?"
Dropping his hand, Dion sighed and headed to the top of the stairs. Calling out, "Yeah?" he was disappointed when his mom called out again, "Taylor," then added, "Where are you, young lady," from what sounded like outside and figuring she thought he had gone outside, he headed downstairs to find her.
In the kitchen, he had just slipped on his shoes when his mom came back inside with a, "There you are," and seeing that he already had his shoes on, she told him, "Get in the car," and seeing she was frazzled about something, Dion was tempted to ask what was wrong, but never got the chance as he watched his mom grab her purse and her car keys, then told him, "Well, go on. Don't just stand there like a lump," before shooing him outside.
From the look on her face Dion could tell she was serious and heading for the car, he climbed in and buckled his seat belt as his mom got in. Starting the car, she eased it down the driveway and curious to know where they were going, Dion almost asked. But, before he could, his mom asked him, "You remember your cousins, Bridgette and Sophia, your aunt Michelle, and you uncle Paul, right?" to which he nodded as he wondered why he suddenly had cousins and an uncle, as he knew aunt Michelle wasn't married and had no children. Listening to his mom, Dion heard her explain, "Well, you aunt and your cousins are coming to visit. Michelle hit a rough patch after a fire destroyed the apartment complex they lived at. And well, with Paul leaving her, finally, the abusive asshole, she needs a place to stay, and a few things to help her out. Just until she can get back on her feet."
Taken aback by his mom openly swearing in front of him, as she rarely ever did so, Dion sat quietly. Knowing his mom was talking both to herself and to him, he found himself wondering how his aunt Michelle's life had gotten so messed up as he heard his mom, "You probably don't remember Sophia. Maybe Bridgette. She about a year or so younger than you. And you were so young the last time your aunt visited, barely out of diapers yourself. Sophia was just a newborn then," and shocked by what he'd been told, Dion wanted to argue that he had seen aunt Michelle about two or so years ago.
But keeping silent, he listened as his mother continued to talk. Suddenly remembering Holly, he chastised himself for having forgotten about his sister and about to ask his mom why she'd been left home, he heard his mom grumble to herself, "Dammit, Michelle. You were always trying to outdo me on everything. I wanted two girls, but was only able to have one. You hooked up with the first guy you found, dropped out of high school and had two daughters of your own. Because I wanted one, you wanted a respectable business, and instead got Paul, a lazy, good-for-nothing, idiot slacker who seems content with barely doing bottom-of-the-barrel factory work," and trailing off, she began to cry as they pulled into the parking lot of the Mervan's Department store.
The car idly began to tick and click as his mom shut it off and then sat and sniffed to herself. Overwhelmed by what he'd just heard, Dion was so stunned, he found himself asking, "What happened to Holly?" before thinking, "Is this all because of the amulet?" and scared that he'd messed things badly, that he was responsible for not only his sister seeming to no longer exist, but that his aunt Michelle's life had gotten pretty screwed up, he told himself, "You need to fix this. Then get rid of that cursed thing."