Trick of the Mind - 11 by Maeryn Lamonte Melanie Ezell's big closet ultimate writer's challenge — Written From The Heart Thanks to Wren Erendae Phoenix for editing/proofing. We headed towards the centre of town until we found a bus that would take us back to the campus. We climbed on board in silence and found a seat near the back. I was too stunned to speak, or even to think. I felt trapped - lost and without hope. The threat of tears pricked the backs of my eyes as I felt Jen's hand come to rest on my back. “We’re not licked yet,” she said. “We'll think of something.” I don’t think she even managed to convince herself.

The next few weeks were pretty dire. Most days, my mind dressed me in something very cute and usually very revealing. The colours were bright, the skirts often short, the frills plentiful. I fell into a deep depression that even Jenny couldn’t help me out of.

My studies were suffering and my grades down to the extent that my tutor called me in for a chat, probably because I was acting more strangely than usual. The previous evening, Jen had dragged me along to watch Gone With the Wind at the union, intent on trying to lower my hemline. It had worked, but my skirts had ended up being so full and frilly that it became almost impossible to negotiate the narrow corridors, or sit in the tight lecture hall seats. He asked me what was going on with me, and if I was doing drugs. There wasn’t much I could tell him without embarrassing myself any more — if in fact it was possible to feel more embarrassed — or probably getting me chucked out of the university for deviant behaviour, so I assured him that I wasn’t taking drugs and that there was nothing going on he could help with. He sent me on my way with an exasperated sigh and a warning that if my grades didn’t pick up soon, he would have no choice but to start dismissal proceedings, and that would be great shame given my excellent start.

I headed for home feeling even more dejected.

Jennifer in the meantime had been spending a lot of time in the library. She’d read through the book Mysterio had suggested, and then gone through just about every other book the library had on hypnotism. Nothing came up with anything she felt might be a help, so in the end she turned to the only other place she could think of.

I had been staring at the same page for about an hour when the knock came on my door. It repeated twice before I responded.

Jen was wearing the dress I’d bought her at Easter.

“You look like crap.” She told me.

I giggled on the verge of hysteria.

“What? Don’t you like this frock?” I asked her, affecting a southern drawl, “I’m sure it looked perfectly divine just the other day.”

“Richard, we can’t let this beat us.”

“Do you have any ideas on what we can do to fight back?”

“Nothing great, but there is someone I know who probably knows enough to help.”

“You want me to tell my darkest secrets to someone on a long shot?”

“You told me.”

“That’s different, I was falling for you, besides you all but figured it out yourself.” I gathered up as many fills and folds as I could and flounced onto the bed.

“Well if our relationship means anything to you, you won’t give up the way you’ve been doing this past few weeks. Come meet my professor, he’s a good guy and he really knows his stuff. At the very least he’ll give us some place to start.”

I shrugged my shoulders. Things couldn’t get much worse than this could they?

“When and where?” I asked.

“He’s agreed to meet us Friday at two o’clock. I don’t have anything then and I’m pretty sure your timetable’s clear.”

I nodded my head and turned back to my book.

“Oh no you don’t,” Jen said grabbing my arm. “Right now I intend to do something to take your mind off this.

“For one thing you need to clean up. I don’t know how long it’s been since you last washed, but I need you to go do that now. Wash your hair too and use that cream, your arms and legs are looking a bit stubbly.”

When Jen gets like this I’ve found it’s easier just to go along with her. I grabbed my dressing gown and wash bag and headed for the shower.

By the time I came back, clean, wet and hairless, she had taken off her white summer dress and laid it out along with a clean bra and pair of panties. She had also added a new pair of sheer tights to the pile.

“What is this?” I asked. “I spend every moment of every day dressed as a girl, now you want me to do it for real?”

“The difference is that you spend every moment thinking you’re dressed as a girl when really you’re not. There have been only two times I’ve known you actually to put on a frock. Once was that first evening with me when I asked and you wore that summer dress from of your suitcase. The other was when your sister bought you that coral dress. Both times something changed about you, and your mood lifted. I was going to hunt for the coral dress while you were in the shower, but then I remember promising to lend this one to you, and since I’d like to see how you look in it anyway…

“You said you’d try anything. Here’s my first experiment.”

She locked the door and waited with her back turned while I slipped on the bra and panties then slid the dress over my head. I put the tights on last, enjoying the feel of the light fabric against my freshly smooth legs.

I stood up and walked over to the mirror. My hair was wet and I looked awful from weeks of depression, but somehow she was still in there looking out.

“Hello Rachael.” I said quietly and a moment later Jen was standing beside me looking at the mirror.

“She’s very lovely,” she told me.

I looked at her quizzically.

“Rachael,” Jen explained. “She’s a lovely young woman, just the same as Richard is a fantastic guy. I think I’ve fallen in love with you both.”

She reached up and kissed me then led me to the bed. After a few minutes of kissing and fondling, she moved a hand under my dress and reached into my smalls. I was more than ready, standing to attention despite the confinement of the underwear. It didn’t take long before her cool hands had massaged me to the limit and I erupted into some strategically placed soft material she had surreptitiously moved into position. I felt all the stress of the past weeks leak away. Jen lay against me in her bra and panties, playing with one of the frills on the dress, reminding me that whatever happened, she was there for me. I took her in my arms and we lay there for a very long time.

There was a knock on the door and we both jumped. It was repeated a moment later and Dave called through the door.

“Been worried about you Rabbit, thought I might take you down to the bar for a jar or two.”

“Give me a minute mate I’m kind of not ready for company at the moment.”

“Awe come on, we’ve seen each other in the locker room, don’t be shy.”

Jen smiled at me, “I think he’s more worried for me Dave.”

“Ooh sh… I mean bug... Oh flip, Sorry Jen.”

“It’s OK Dave, give us a minute.”

I pulled the dress off and handed it to her. She slid it over her head and settled it in place. I zipped her up while she unclasped my bra. I was reaching to pull the panties off when she shook her head.

“No time,” she whispered. “Besides you can’t use these any more.”

She held up my boxers which were sticky from my recent outburst.

I grabbed a tee-shirt, then pulled my trousers and socks over the tights. A moment later I was wearing a white dress to match the one Jenny was smoothing out. She brushed a few last hairs into place then looked me over and gave me a nod.

Dave had the biggest grin on his face I’d ever seen. I mean honestly if it had been any wider the top of his head would have fallen off.

“You two,” he said coming in and grabbing both of us into his familiar bear hug. “I hope you’re treating him right Jen, he doesn’t need a tease right now.”

“She’s not teasing Dave, and neither of us wants to go all the way just yet. I’d appreciate it if you kept a lid on this for the now. Jen doesn’t need the gossip.”

“OK, Mum’s the word.”

I hated that expression. Anything that reminded me of my Mum messed me up.

“Ready for a drink then?”

“I guess so, except we haven’t eaten yet,” Jen said. “In fact I don’t think Richard’s eaten in days”

“Well that won’t do. Be a shame to skin the rabbit and find there’s nothing underneath except bone.” Dave let out one his bellowing laughs. “I know just the thing. They’re selling burgers at two for one down at the union. We can grab a couple of them each and chase them down with a few pints in the bar. You’re coming too Jen, so help me you could do with a bit more meat on you too.”

We were helpless in the whirlwind that was Dave, and had no choice but to allow him to whisk us off to beery heaven. For the first time since the beginning of this term I actually felt good. Dave kept a running banter going which had Jen and me laughing until it hurt, and somewhere in the middle of it all I realised that even though I was wearing the same dress as Jen, things didn’t seem quite so wrong as usual. By that time we were a few pints in though and I was soon too far gone to care.

We stayed too long at the bar that night, especially with it being mid week. As usual, Jen peeled off towards her hall halfway home and David and I finished our own journey home together. We both made it back successfully and I collapsed onto my bed fully dressed and was asleep in seconds.

I awoke the next morning still wearing the white dress and suffering under the worst hangover of my life. It was eight o’clock and I had a lecture at nine, so I grabbed some spare clothes and made my way into the bathroom. I stripped off the dress which dutifully turned back into my jeans and tee-shirt, except I couldn’t figure out why there was still a pair of tights and knickers on the floor when I was done. My mind was too fogged, so I climbed into the shower and shocked myself with a spray of cold water. When I was awake enough, I turned it to hot and washed the smell of cigarette smoke and stale beer out out of my hair.

I climbed into a fresh pair of boxers, put on my jeans and a newly washed tee-shirt then gathering up the dirties, including the incriminating ones, which still lay incongruously on the floor. I staggered back to my room, still not firing on all cylinders and sat down on my bed. There was something about these things from yesterday, but I couldn’t figure what.

By now I was wearing some sort of bohemian style mini dress — courtesy of a Monkees video from the bar, the previous evening I think — with long flared sleeves and almost all of my legs showing through tan tights. I found a pair of socks and my shoes, and by the time I was ready to leave, the outfit had been completed with a pair of knee length PVC zip up boots.

I had enough wit not to leave the real tights and panties lying around and stuffed them into the bottom of a bag before filling it with a selection of books in the hope that at least some of them would be useful. On the way to class, I stopped at the kitchen and downed glasses of water until my distended stomach cried for mercy. I was sure the previous evening had been helpful for a number of reasons, but at that moment my hangover refused to let me figure out exactly what they all were.