Jim had come to the mall that day to do some shopping just like any ordinary boy. In fact, on this particular day, he was looking for a new video game to spend his saved allowance on. He was certainly not looking for anything unusual, but that is what he found when he came upon a strange looking little shop that he had never seen before. The sign above it read Spells ‘R Us.
“A magic shop?” he wondered to himself.
Jim felt a strange attraction to the shop. It seemed to be calling to him somehow. He hesitated a moment, unsure if he really wanted to find out what was inside, but the pull of curiosity was too strong to resist.
Jim walked in the shop to find a darkly lit arrangement of shelves and oddities. To him, it looked like a very unusual antique store. It had the normal things you would expect to see in an antique store, such as chairs, lamps and necklaces, but there were also things like a shelf full of white skulls (some jewel encrusted) and a collection of bottles with a sign describing them as “Assorted Potions.” (A small note at the bottom of the sign said, “Speak to Manager before tasting. Management accepts no responsibility for unexpected transformations.”)
The whole place hummed with a quiet energy, as if everything in the store was alive but sleeping. As he looked into a glass case full of rings, Jim had the uneasy feeling that he was being watched. He turned around quickly to see a little old man standing behind him.
“Can I help you find something?” the old man said.
Jim stood dumbfounded for a moment. The old man was dressed just like a wizard out of a fantasy story. He even wore a pointed hat. On most people, the outfit would have appeared comical, but those clothes seemed to suit this old man perfectly.
“I… um, was just looking around,” said Jim. “I never noticed this store here before.”
“Most people don’t,” the old man said and smiled. He walked around behind the counter and said, “Let me show you something. I think you might find this interesting.”
He opened a drawer and pulled out what appeared to be an ordinary deflated red rubber balloon.
“A Balloon?” asked Jim.
“Yes, a balloon, but not an ordinary balloon,” the old man added as he saw the disappointed look on Jim’s face. “This balloon has a spell on it that allows you to control certain aspects of living creatures.”
“A spell?” asked Jim in his most incredulous tone. “Come on.”
“What? You don’t believe in spells?” the old man asked. “You look young enough to believe in magic still. What are you? Ten? Eleven?”
“Twelve,” said Jim. “I’m small for my age.”
“Ah,” sighed the old man. “You’re at that doubting age. Then, I suppose a demonstration is in order.”
The old man held the balloon in one hand and said, “Control Jim’s height.” He began blowing air into the balloon. Before Jim had a chance to ask how the old man knew his name, he was distracted by a strange sensation. With each breath the old man blew into the balloon, Jim felt himself grow taller and taller. His whole body seemed to stretch out longer as if he was made out of rubber. After six breaths, Jim was as tall as the old man. Looking slightly out of breath, the old man stopped blowing and said, “Release.” He allowed the balloon to deflate, but Jim’s height didn’t change any more.
Jim was shocked. He was so tall now! When he looked down at his body, his feet seemed miles away. He could see that his jeans were now at least six inches too short to cover his legs, and his T-shirt now left his belly button exposed. He held up his arms which looked long and skinny like broomsticks. He guessed that he was about a full foot taller than his normal 4’10”. To his amazement, he had grown into a very skinny, nearly 6 foot tall 12-year-old boy.
“Whoa,” said Jim in awe.
“Indeed,” said the old man.
Jim began to look a bit worried then. As much as he liked being taller, he didn’t know how he would explain this change to his parents. And anyway, he certainly didn’t want to be this skinny.
“This is cool and all,” Jim said. “But… can that thing change me back too?”
“Watch and see,” said the old man. He inflated the balloon with six breaths and said, “Control Jim’s height.” He let the balloon deflate again, and Jim felt as though he was riding down on an fast elevator as he rapidly shrank. When the balloon was empty again, the old man said, “Release.”
Jim examined himself once more. He seemed to be back to his usual height (although he suspected he might actually be an inch taller now).
“Cool,” said Jim.
“Most definitely,” said the old man. “But that is not it’s only effect. The balloon can change any aspect of a living creature, either in part or the whole creature, so long as that aspect can be governed by increasing and decreasing measurements.”
“Um,” said Jim, confused. “Could you explain that in plain English?”
Sounding exasperated, the old man said, “Listen! With this balloon, you can make living things bigger and smaller. You can select individual body parts and change them independently of the rest of the body. You can also change other aspects of a living thing such as age or height or hair length. You could make someone fat or skinny or muscular. You could give someone big ears or little feet. Do you understand me?”
“Wow, yeah,” said Jim. “How do I use it?”
“Well,” said the old man, sounding calmer now. “First, you have to purchase the item.”
“Oh,” said Jim, disappointed. “I don’t think I have enough money for something like that.”
The old man took a moment to carefully size him up. Then, he nodded his head as if he had decided something. “I will sell it to you for sixty-three dollars and thirteen cents.”
Jim opened his wallet and pulled out four tens, four fives, three singles, a dime and three pennies. That was all the money he had on him to the penny.
“What luck,” said the old man. “You happen to have just enough.” He rang up the order on an antique cash register and handed Jim the balloon and a slip of paper that had the word “Instructions” written on it in large letters.
“I should warn you,” the old man said. “No returns. No refunds.”
Jim nodded.
“I would recommend that you read the instructions thoroughly before you attempt to use the item as a safety precaution, but I will give you a basic tutorial right now.”
Jim listened intently.
“First,” said the old man. “You must be holding the balloon. Second, come up with a subject for transformation, and picture that subject in your mind. Third, say ‘control’ then the name or description of the subject. (You only need to be specific enough so that you will know what you are talking about. For example, I could have called you ‘boy’ and that would have been sufficient. Or, if I only wanted to change a part of you, such as your feet, I could have said, ‘boy’s feet.’) Then, describe what aspect of that subject you wish to change. For example, it could be ‘height’ (as I did with you) or ‘age’ or ‘weight’… whatever. All you need do is say ‘control,’ name the subject, then describe the aspect to be changed.
“The order of those three details doesn’t matter. I could say ‘control the size of the boy’s feet’ and that would work. But, you must have those three details when you speak the words for the spell to work.
“If the balloon is empty when you say that, whatever air you blow into it will increase the aspect you have named. If the balloon has air in it when you say that, whatever air you release will decrease the aspect you have named.
“When you have finished with the changes, simply say ‘release,’ and your control over the subject will be lifted. But, any changes you made with the balloon will remain.”
Jim looked down at the balloon and smiled, “Cool, I get it.”
Excited, he stuffed the instructions in his pocket and hurried out of the store. “Thanks!” he shouted.
“Take care with it,” the old man said as Jim ran off. “And be sure to read those instructions!” he added and chuckled to himself as he realized that Jim probably didn’t hear that last part.
Jim’s mind was racing as fast as his legs were as he imagined all of the things he could do with the balloon.
What would he try first?