I woke up later, wondering if it all had been a dream, but sitting up, I could tell my body
had changed. I got up and looked in my mirror, only to see a girl of 12 or so looking back
at me.
She had light blonde hair, and looked...
With shock I realized that I looked like Jenny! Or more accurately, like a girl that was
half-Jo and half-Jenny. With an insane giggle, I realized if somehow Jenny and I had a
daughter, this is what she would look like.
The box! It had scanned me and Jenny....so that's what the whole "template" thing had
meant! I remembered playing DnD with Mike's friends; the Monster Manual had things
called templates, like Half-Dragon, where you added some of the traits of one monster
onto another.
I was now the proud recipient of the Half-Jenny Template.
The whole thing was scary, and yet...not. I felt pretty good, and I had to admit, I looked
pretty good too. But I couldn't stay this way!
I went back into the den and turned on my laptop.
System at 100%. Scanning....
Found: 1 human female [50% hybrid] (age 12.3 years)
Resume scanning? (Y/N)
I hit N, hoping it would give me more options. I got a command line, so I decided to type
"Help".
Sure enough, there was a help file. Apparently, the box was some kind of "biomorphic
data compiler". It could scan the biological profile of a human, and integrate it with
someone else's DNA...or something. I noticed at the end of the file there was an update.
Update 3.2.0: Subjects may be able to alter their bio-data balance with concentration,
reducing or increasing the percentage of additional data while in a relaxed state.
It was worth a shot. I sat back in the chair and meditated, something I'd learned when I
attended a New Age seminar with Naomi (she was really into that sort of thing).
I started thinking about waterfalls and the forest, and I felt my body change. I was getting
taller! In a few minutes, I was nearly my old self again.
My computer had new information for me.
Found: human female [10% hybrid] (age 17)
I checked myself out in the bathroom mirror. I looked a bit younger, my hair was lighter,
my skin was softer, and I was a few inches shorter, but I could pass for myself at least.
I felt pretty relieved, but could I control my transformation?
That's when the door bell rang.
It was Jenny, and she beamed at me. "Wow, you look prettier today, Jo. Did you dye your
hair?"
I ruffled her hair. "Kinda. You like it?"
She nodded. "You should dye it blonde, we could be sisters!"
If only she knew! I smiled and we headed over to her house.
Melissa commented on my appearance, but she attributed it to me getting more sleep
lately. "You'd been looking so tired lately, I'm glad you're getting better."
Tired was the least of my problems; 10% of a six-year-old girl's energy is still a lot. I
spent the whole day playing with Jenny at the park. I started feeling...I don't know...
envious, I guess, of Jenny. She could just be a kid, and enjoy her life totally.
I really wanted to do the same.