Eric had been walking a long time, going on Walkabout as part of his magical training. Thankfully he had found some money that might allow him to take a break. Up ahead he spotted a water park, Bikini Beach. Maybe this would be just the vacation he needed, after all the Tao provided. If only drama and demons would stay away.

Bikini Beach:
The Wanderer
Based on the Bikini Beach stories created by Elrod W.

By poetheather

Eric stopped walking and took in a deep breath. When his Master had told him that he had to go Walkabout for a while as part of his training he wasn’t sure what that would entail. Now three months and several hundred miles later he had a better idea.

Master Shinju had told him that this part of his training would help him develop his understanding of the Tao, of virtue and of the use of the magic he was learning. After four years of training he had finally gotten a chance to do something other than meditate, practice, eat, meditate, read, meditate, etc… He was glad of the break.

He had actually done a number of fun things on this Walkabout. He smiled as he remembered helping that teenage runaway. She had been so scared and alone and so very pregnant. The magic had helped him find her the place where she needed to go to be best taken care of. It had all worked out. On the other hand, that fight in Atlanta hadn’t been so fun.

Eric just shook his head to clear it. No need to dwell on bad stuff. He pulled out his ID pouch again from his shirt. Something was up for sure. Finding three hundred dollars by the side of the road this morning had been a sign, but of what? He was sure the Tao would show him.

Forty minutes of walking later showed him a very possible what. Ahead lay the entrance to a water park. The sign read Bikini Beach. His eyes widened. Surely rest and relaxation was not on the agenda for him? But Master Shinju was very clear that sometimes in goofing off you did the most growth. So that was what the three hundred dollars was for. Rest. It didn’t hurt that he would get to spend some time with girls. Four years was a long time for a twenty-year-old boy to be without any female companions. Besides, if he got lucky he could finally use some of the sexual techniques he had been taught. He smiled broadly and walked into the parking lot.

It was fairly full for this late in the spring. Surely school hadn’t let out or anything. He had no idea. But he didn’t worry; he was sure everything would work out all right. He spotted the condos up on the hillside next to the park. It looked as if they were easily accessible from the parking lot. That might mean a bed and air conditioning. Despite all his training Eric still liked to be spoiled. This could end up being a fun diversion.

* * * * * * * * * *

Anya spotted the boy with the backpack fairly easily. She had trouble believing that someone had just walked to their park. She had gotten used to a number of odd things happening while she had lived and worked with Grandmother, but even this was unusual. It was exceedingly rare for someone to walk to the Park and for someone to have a trailpack, was unusual. As he drew closer she tried to get a read of him. ‘Might as well find out what he was up to before he gets here.’

She then got here second surprise. She couldn’t get anything from him. She could tell he was there, but it was almost as if he wasn’t there. She frowned a little in concentration. Still nothing. She was still frowning when he got up to the booth.

“Hello there. I was wondering does this water park have a room deal with that place over there?” Eric smiled charmingly; the girl behind the counter was really cute.

“Uh, yes we do. Why do you ask?” Anya liked the look of this boy, he was neat and dressed well, but something about him did not make her feel too confident. She just wished she could get a good read off of him.

“Well, if possible I would like to visit your park and get a room as well.”

“We do have package deals. But this is a member’s only park. We don’t sell tickets, only passes good for a number of days.” Anya wished Grandmother would get out here and help her figure out this man. Why couldn’t she get any thing from him?

“Okay. How long would two hundred dollars go for one of those packages?”

“We have a special going on as a welcome to summer package. A week’s pass and a week's stay at the condos. Would that do?” Well, if she couldn’t read him might as well see how he deals with a week as a girl. And if she couldn’t get a read she would use the last male’s magical set up for the ticket. That sounded like the right thing to do. It might be better to go with the basic package plus mind alteration and memory erase. That would be the better plan.

“Cool. One pass please.” Eric handed over the two hundred dollars happily. A week’s vacation from walking. That would be great. And a week straight in a real bed. He wished he knew what the Tao had in store for him.

She handed him the ticket. “There you go. Now if you just go and shower before you head out to the pool area. Health code regulation. When you want your key and room number just come and get me. My name is Anya.”

Eric said his thanks rather absently as he headed towards the changing area. There was something odd about the ticket but he couldn’t figure out what it was. Almost as if it were…magic? He shook his head in disbelief, magic? At a water park? Right. But still…there was something about that ticket, and come to think of it, about Anya as well.

He changed into his swimming trunks still running this over in his mind. Eric was sure it meant something, but he didn’t seem to be getting any closer to an answer. Perhaps he could meditate on it while he was in the park.

He stepped up to the shower and turned the water on. Eric was surprised that the water was actually warm. With a smile he stepped under the water and let its warmth relax him. The water had an almost massage like quality to it. With his eyes closed and letting the slight aches of the miles of walking pour out of him he never noticed the slight pink tinge the spray took on. His body felt warm and relaxed.

His eyes snapped open as the changes began to affect his body and his mind. His lessons told him quickly that the magic was going to warp his body but he could defend his mind. Eric began chanting and moving his hands in the sacred patterns immediately. The water still poured down on him as his magic fought to retain full control of his mind. He turned everything inward for this and thus didn’t notice what had become of his body. After a few minutes of intense focus he felt the invading magic fade and his mind remained his.

Eric looked around for the source of the attack. The warm water still poured down over his body, but it now felt different. He looked down at himself as he spotted no one around him. He was shorter, and less muscular and had longer hair, and two rather graphic changes. His breasts moved with his breath and he could tell something else had changed by its conspicuous lack. He stepped from the water and looked at himself in the mirror. He looked like Master Shinju’s niece, Michelle, from Hong Kong. His eyes were the same green they had always been, but now his hair had gone raven black like hers and hung down past his shoulders. He had feminine curves and the chest to go with them. He was really glad that they weren’t utterly huge. His swim trunks had changed as well to a bright blue pair of bikini bottoms that went well with his now Asian coloring. As he moved to the mirror to get a closer look, he could feel the shift in his remembered center of gravity. He worked to adapt to that and to the different alignment of his hips. ‘This will take some getting used to.’ He mused. A close inspection of both him and his new reflection both yielded the same information, he had been totally changed, with the exception of his mind.

‘The showers had to be the activating agent,’ he thought. ‘With the ticket being the catalyst. The fact that I look like Michelle could be due to the fact that I really find her attractive, so she is the female most often on my mind. Workable starting place, now as to whom? Anya?’

The cute look on his new face as he worked this out caused him to laugh out loud at the sheer craziness of it all. The delicate sound of his voice only fueled it more. This whole situation was ludicrous. He was still laughing as he walked out of the changing room to find some answers.

“Young Lady! We do not allow that kind of thing at this park.”

Eric turned at the voice. There was an older lady of medium height and build holding a blue bikini top that matched his bottoms. He looked closer at her and could get a touch of her influence in all of this. “Don’t allow what? Top less bathing, or men?”

Grandmother’s eyes opened a little wider at this and then narrowed. There was something about this one. He had only laughed at this, and there was also the fact that she had felt the use of magic briefly in the changing rooms. “To answer your questions, yes. While you put this on could you answer one of mine?”

Eric took the two blue triangles of cloth with strings hanging out and nodded. How was he supposed to put this on? He was much better at taking them off.

As he struggled to put the top on Grandmother realized that somehow this boy had kept the magic from affecting his mind. And that meant…”You practice magic?”

“Yes, ma’am I do.” Eric finished off getting his breasts covered. The support from the bikini top felt nice. At the ladies question he recovered the manners his master had taught him. He bowed with the ease of long practice. “My name is Eric Summers. I am a student of the arts under Master Shinju Kwai.”

“Who?” She had never heard the name before, but that wasn’t too out of the ordinary. A lot of the oriental Masters never joined the Wizards Guild.

“Master Shinju Kwai. Taoist Alchemian Sorcerer. I have been his student for four years.”

“I see. I guess we will need to talk in my office.” She turned and led the cute Asian girl into her office. Eric seemed to be taking this better than most of the other first timers who didn’t know what was going on. But than again if he weren’t a magic student it wouldn’t be as much of a shock as it would be to others. They sat after she handed him a bottle of water. “So you are a magic practitioner.”

“Yes ma’am. I am in western terms on my Journeyman excursion. This morning I found three hundred dollars. So when I found your park I figured that is what it was for. It works like that for Master Shinju and his students.”

“And your ticket? Can I see it please?”

Eric handed it over smiling. ‘Well, I guess I can say that my day can’t get much weirder at this point. And here I thought Master Chuang-tzu’s dream was mere metaphor.’

He was still trying to make sense out of all of the new information that his changed body was giving him. He was sitting differently with the wider hips and the extra padding on his rear. It also seemed as if his body was more sensitive to things. The feel of his skin was different as well. These new sensations were rather distracting. Nothing seemed to fit anymore. He focused on the here and now to keep from being lost in the new sensations.

Grandmother looked at the ticket for a few moments. She could tell that the magic of the ticket was set to the boy across from her but that the mind alteration and memory erase aspects certainly had failed. “Anya, could you come to my office please?” she sent.

After a short delay Anya walked into the office. “Yes Grandmother?”

“You sold a week long pass to this person?” Grandmother gestured to Eric.

Anya looked at him and barely got the recognition that the spell was supposed to give. She still couldn’t get anything from him as he…she sat there. “Yes.”

Grandmother sighed. She had been afraid this might happen. “I am sorry Eric. I usually don’t let anyone who practices magic into my park without prior arrangements. You made it in because the style of what you have learned is so different. I had no protections against it. So I guess you are our guest for the next week.”

Anya’s mouth dropped in surprise. He was a magician? But he didn’t feel like one. They were usually so easy to spot. The magic literally poured through their auras.

Eric smiled up at Anya. She seemed to be genuinely surprised at this. So was he, but he had been taught to roll with everything like that is how it had been planned. It was one of the secret Taoist teachings. Act like it was meant to happen the way it had, even if it was a surprise to you. Kept other people off their guard and made them think you knew more than you did.

Grandmother kept talking. “The spell that you were undergoing would have given you a female mind and fairly high libido, but would have altered your memories of the week to keep you from knowing what actually happened. It would also give you the body of the girl you thought of most. Nothing really malicious.”

“That would explain that then. I take it then that I don’t have that mind set?”

“No you don’t. But the libido on the body is keyed a bit high. You will have physically driven urges, not mental.” Grandmother sighed. “I am sorry about this.”

Eric laughed again. “Tell you what. I get my money back and you guys treat me to a good week and we’ll call it even. This should be fun. It is certainly going to be a different point of view. And the Tao hasn’t really led me astray yet. An odd sense of humor, but still led me right.”

Anya and Grandmother were again confused. He wasn’t mad? Grandmother thought about it for a second. Why not? He got his money back, they took care of him and no problems. And now she had an idea what that style of magic looked like so she could add that into the wards as well, to prevent another mix up. “Fine Eric. That would be a good idea. Anya, please take our guest around. Show him around and get him some lunch. You did this to him so you get to help him. I assume you are hungry, Eric?”

The cute Asian girl smiled brightly. “You bet. Breakfast was at sunrise.”

Anya led Eric out of the office and into the park. Eric looked around, interested. There were only women and girls here. No men at all. He took his fill of women in their suits, being polite not to stare too much in his appreciation. There was a good view anyway he looked. So there was no need to stare at any given girl in particular. Even his companion was well worth looking at. Life was good.

The two of them got a light lunch and chatted. They had a lot in common with being students still. The differences in the way the magical energy was put together made for plenty of chances to explain each other’s styles.

“You know, if you're going to be here a week looking like that I can’t just call you Eric. People will stare.”

“Good point. I’ll need a name that fits this body and I’ll actually answer to. How about Erin? It’s close.” replied Eric after a little bit of thought.

“Sounds like a good name to me. Come on Erin; let’s go have some fun. We can talk more about this other stuff later. Like tonight over dinner.”

“Sure. It’ll be my treat. After what else am I going to do with my money?”

The two girls laughed as they walked into the park. Anya showed Erin her favorite of the slides and they rode that a few times. And Erin lost her top only once before she got the hang of it. They swam a little in the wave pool and then drifted lazily on inner tubes along the river.

Erin was having more fun then she had had in a really large portion of her life. Her studies never really left her too much time to do something fun. Her life had been school and martial arts for as long as she could remember. In fact, Master Shinju had commented on that fact before. So now she was making up for it.

Erin was fascinated by the interplay between Anya and her. They were discussing things in a much more relaxed fashion than she had ever done with a girl before. It was more emotional and more intimate. She liked that. It was a nice difference. True most of that was on Anya’s part and not his, but it was still nice.

She also got a thrill out of how her body was reacting to everything. It almost felt as if he was a walking bundle of nerves. Her skin was more sensitive and the feel of her body in the water was amazing. It still felt out of place and she was having a difficult time adjusting to it. Staying out of these sensations enough to be company took work.

She wondered about what things would have changed if the rest of the process had been allowed to continue. She furrowed her brows in thought. What else could be different? Would these feelings stop being so distracting?

“Erin, what’s wrong?” asked Anya, concerned about the look of thought on Erin’s face.

“Anya, … I was wondering what other changes would have occurred if I had allowed them to. I mean talking to you is great, but you are being more intimate and emotional than I seem willing to be. Is that a mental thing? Is that a thing that would change? All of my urges still seem to be mine, another mental thing? And these sensations coming from this body are almost overwhelming. I wonder if it would be possible to alter this?” Erin spoke haltingly, trying to get this out without feeling to embarrassed. She was still a guy in her mind, and while this experience was novel and fascinating it was rather disturbing.

“The answer is usually yes. So long as the time period doesn’t expire it is possible to change things. But with what you know? I don’t know. If you wanted to give it a try we could.” Erin was still being a different sort of customer/guest of the park. She was actually working on trying to make this an experience and not a trial.

“Well, I figure that if the Tao guided me here I might as well get the most out of this that I can. Let’s just talk out the changes before we try them.”

“Sure. What did you have in mind?” Anya sat up a little more to get a better look at Erin.

“Well, your Grandmother said I stopped the mental portion of things. The information and the different thought patterns and the like. And I would like to change this body. I don’t want to be Michelle. If I’m going to do this I might as well be me with differences.”

Anya nodded in thought as Erin spoke. “I think that can be done. You won’t be fighting the change and it will be a bit more controlled this time. Changing how you look should also be easy but different magics could have some unexpected results, some of which are really bad. I’ll be with you to make this easier.”

“And if it doesn’t work, we’ll talk to your Grandmother?” asked Erin.

“Sure. Though for all I know she may even meet us at the showers.”

Erin and Anya made their way through the park back to the entrance. Anya led Erin to the much larger Ladies changing room. The room was mostly empty as the crowd was all in the park. They went to the farthest back shower. Anya turned on the water and opened herself to the magic putting the spell in the water into the matrix that Erin wanted. She really concentrated, not wanting any mistakes. “In you go Erin.”

Erin stepped into the water a little apprehensively. Now that she knew what was going on she was a bit nervous. She altered her breathing to help calm her. She saw the pink mist forming as the massage like feeling pounded into her muscles. With effort she refrained from reacting as the fabric of the spell rewove parts of her brain. After that she felt the body begin its shift.

The Asian body reverted back through Eric’s original make up and became the female him. He was taller again, but not as tall as he had been. His red hair grew out to the same length his had been as Michelle, just past his shoulders. He was still not as muscular as he had been, but now he looked like the athlete he was, unlike how he had in Michelle’s body. His breasts were about a full B cup on this body, with quite noticeable nipples and areola. His hips filled out more, as did his rear. This body felt closer to his remembered sense of balance. But even that shifted until the sensations were all registering as normal. That in itself was comforting, as the disparity of knowledge to reflex he had in the other form had been giving him some problems.

His suit had gone from blue to a rich hunter green. It also switched to an even more modest cut, which felt right somehow. Eric smiled at that, the suit looked quite striking against his skin. This pleased him in a way that his clothes never had. He smirked as he stepped out to greet Anya again. Erin responded in her now natural alto as she posed playfully. “Think it worked?”

Without a thought Erin hugged Anya. It felt like the natural thing to do at this point. “Thank you. This feels some much better. I was going a little crazy in the other body since things didn’t really fit.”

Anya smiled at this, hugging Erin back. She responded sheepishly to Erin. “I’m glad it helped. I’m sorry about doing this to you. I toned down your libido to something more like a natural woman’s.”

Erin giggled at that. “Anya, don’t worry about it. Let’s just have fun. This is my vacation from wandering about. You just helped to make it a bit more… memorable.”

Anya was surprised at the change in Eric…uh…Erin. He…she didn’t seem as reserved or as quiet as he…she had been before. It was an interesting change from how he had been earlier. Sometimes the changes the park created surprised even her. He did look cute as a female Eric though. Kind of an Irish beach bunny. “Then let’s go meet some other people and have some fun.”

The two of them went back out to the park and had more fun. Anya introduced Erin to Elizabeth and Jenny, making plans for the four of them to go out that night for dinner. That done, Anya left Erin for a while to get some work done. Erin just enjoyed the park. Lounging around and having a nice cool drink was really nice. Her aching feet appreciated the time spent in the hammock, as she laid back and hummed.

She had never really hummed before, but it felt right. A lot of things felt right at this point. She wasn’t as worried about making it through his journeyman test as he had been. She didn’t feel the same drive for success that had been pushing him. She was happy with the world as it was, everything just felt right. She smiled to herself; that was what Master Shinju always said to be on the look out for. And now here she was, just basking in the rightness of the world.

The announcement that the park was closing in fifteen minutes brought Erin out of her meditative daze. Fifteen minutes? She couldn’t really remember how long she had been in the hammock. She got up and stretched. That felt really good.

People were moving through the park towards the exit and a number of the employees were already hard at work cleaning up things. The Sun was still quite visible in the sky. Then he remembered something about the park closing at six that evening for some maintenance. Erin smiled at that.

She walked back towards the entrance, relishing the roll of her new hips. Everything felt so different and so the same that it was really cool. She was impressed with the park and the magic that had so fully transformed him to her. She was really beginning to look forward to the rest of the week. Between this and the first actual vacation in well over four years, she was bound to utterly relax for a change.

She walked into the men’s locker room and back into the shower. This time she washed herself and her hair with the nice smelling soap from the wall dispenser that she hadn’t noticed earlier. Probably showed up at the end of the day. The warm water again massaged her shoulders and back. She sighed contentedly and gave herself over to the wonderful feeling of the shower jets. After a while she turned it off and got about getting herself ready.

After drying herself with the Park Logo towel that the old woman had given her earlier, she opened her locker to get at the stuff in her backpack. Her traveling clothes were still folded on top of her pack as she had left them; only her clothes had been changed to fit her new body.

A sports bra and white cotton panties lay on top of her clothes. She pulled them on, turning her attention to her other clothes. Her hemp drawstring pants were still mostly unchanged except for the size. Her top had changed to a lightweight three quarters length sleeve top with a hood in hunter green, to contrast with the natural beige of her pants. Her boots had changed fairly well though. These were lighter, much lighter. As were her hiking socks. She pulled them on and laced up her boots. She looked at herself in the mirror.

A cute, athletically built redhead looked back at her, smiling mischievously. Her green eyes sparkled some. Her cheeks shone with the color that the sun had given her and her hair gleamed, even under the fluorescents of the locker room. She looked ready for a day on the trail. ‘Wow, I look great. Did I look this good as I guy?’

She chuckled at the thought and grabbed her backpack. The weight hadn’t changed considerably, though now it was a green pack, the same color as her shirt. She lifted it to her shoulder easily, though with a bit more effort than before. She whistled to herself as she walked out to the front of the park.

Anya waved at her from her booth, as she seemed to be counting something. Erin waved back and headed over. Anya smiled brightly. “I’m almost done here Erin. I am sure Jenny and Liz are almost done as well.”

“Fine. Where should I wait?” She looked around, hoping to put her bag down. It wasn’t too heavy, but if there was no reason to hold it….

“Over there, just outside the gate. We’ll come around to pick you up. It shouldn’t be too long.” She smiled again and returned to her counting as Erin headed towards one of the tables by the parking lot. She put down her bag and hopped up onto the table. If she had some time she might as well meditate. She folded herself into lotus and slipped out of her mind.

Her eyes opened as she heard Anya call out to her from the parking lot ahead of her. Anya was there in a four-door car with Jenny and Liz, waving to get her attention. Erin hopped off of the table and grabbed her bag and headed toward them.

Anya popped the trunk and gave Erin a chance to store her bag. Erin pulled out the little pouch she had kept her ID and money in from one of the zippered pockets and got into the car. She slid into the back seat with Jenny. “Thanks. So where are you taking new little me to eat?”

The other girls giggled at that. Liz spoke up. “There is a really nice all you can eat soup and salad place by the mall. Does that sound good?”

“That sounds great. I can actually eat all I want for a change, instead of usually going to sleep a little hungry. Life on the road hasn’t been too easy. It was rare to actually get a full meal regularly. So this break should be nice.” Erin chatted away happily.

“Really? What was it like?” asked Jenny.

“Well, mostly I have walked everywhere. I rarely got rides except when the weather was bad. So the physical exercise has been rough. It wears you out. I’ve been wandering about for about three months now. At some point my Master is going to let me know I can stop. Then, I get to study on my own until I feel I have achieved mastery. But sometimes, I had small or no meals; sometimes I ended up between towns, with whatever I had happened to have, which was never much. Between that and what I could scavenge at that point I never could eat much. Being a Vegetarian on the road is not an easy thing to do.”

Liz spoke up, a little surprised. “You’re a Vegetarian?”

Erin nodded. “Yep. Have been for the last six years. My body doesn't do well with meat. I got a little sick whenever I ate it. Just some nausea, but it got old fast, especially when I didn’t feel that way if I didn’t eat meat. But I did get some grief in high school though. A couple of the schools wrestlers gave me some grief about it once. That was the first time people at my school found out about the fact that I had been training in Martial Arts since I was six.”

“How old were you then, Erin?” asked Jenny. She was looking over at the red head interested.

“Fifteen. I met my current Master the next year. After…after my parents accident.” Erin’s heart still ached when she thought about that. She always wished that the magic could bring them back, even though she knew it was impossible. “He…he took me in and that is when I began to learn magic. It’s been fun, interesting and tough all at the same time.”

Liz and Jenny started at that. “You do magic? Like Anya?”

“Didn’t Anya tell you? Uh…yes. But a very different style of magic than either her or her grandmother uses. That caused some…issues earlier.” She smiled at the memory of the old woman looking confused at her, as she had exited the locker room laughing.

“Anya?! Why didn’t you tell us? At least some warning?” asked Liz.

Anya looked sheepish at that. “It kind of slipped my mind as I was busy working. Sorry guys. I didn’t mean to leave that out.”

The two others chuckled at that. Soon enough the four of them were pulling into the parking lot of the Soup and Salad place Liz had mentioned. They piled out and headed inside, to grab trays and plates so they could load themselves down with salad.

As they were making their way through the line Erin felt eyes staring at her. She was confused for a moment, and then turned to look. A couple of college age guys were looking her over, smiling and chatting to themselves. She seemed to be the subject of their conversation. Their eyes stayed on her till she joined the others at the table. She felt cold and dirty inside due to the feel of their eyes. It didn’t even remotely seem like a friendly leer.

Erin was blushing from embarrassment and some irritation at being treated like an object. The other girls looked confused for a second, and then spotted the guys, who looked away at that point laughing quietly. Jenny reached out and touched Erin on the arm. “Don’t let it get to you Erin. Guys are often like that. You get used to it after a while. They don’t know how rude they’re being.”

“What got me was that I felt like I was a piece of meat, an object. Ugh. Is that normal?” Erin was trying to get the feel of their eyes off of her. She managed to not head off to the bathroom and scrub herself clean. There was something about those two that didn’t sit right.

“No, that’s not normal. Most guys aren’t aware that they are looking you over and judging you. But those two? I think they did know and just didn’t care. Most guys aren’t like that,” remarked Anya. “How I would love to get my hands on them at the park.”

Erin decided that she needed to change the topic to get her mind off of those two jerks. “So tell me about the park. I got the shower thing, but I don’t know the why?”

Jenny and Liz chuckled a little at that. Their looks shared something that Erin wasn’t able to catch without trying to intrude into their thoughts. She didn’t want to do that. Anya rolled her eyes at those two and started her explanation. “The park was my grandmother’s idea. She made it as a refuge for women. It’s a place where a woman can go to have fun and not get worried about guys like those two. Most women can’t stand being looked at like that either. So the park is some place they can go to have fun and sunbathe and play and definitely not have to worry about guys like that.”

“The park also does something else. Because of the magic we can insure that no man who enters the park is going to really ogle women. But there is another thing we do.” Anya paused at this point. She took a deep breath and continued. “If a guy, or a group of guys come to the park, insisting on coming into the park, to gape at women in their suits we…deal with them. The showers can be set to all manner of things. We have changed a number of men into a fitting punishment for their actions. We have made sex starved bimbos out of frat rats who only wanted to pick up a girl for their frat to screw. We have used the magic to teach lessons to thieves and trespassers. We have even changed some men into little girls. One time we did it because it was right, once to save another little girl’s life. The park has helped a number of people and punished others for their actions. I am much more into the whole ‘teaching them’ part of things.”

“What do you mean helped?” Erin was trying to follow that part of the explanation.

Liz spoke up. “I got a new lease on life thanks to the park. Alzheimer’s had trapped me in my own body with my memories of friends and family dying. My own kids couldn’t really cope with me anymore. I was a burden to them and that hurt. Anya and Grandmother gave me another chance, in another younger body. I accepted and never looked back. I have all my old memories, but with new ones joining them.”

Jenny spoke up as well, “She gave me a job when no one else would. I also got some years added onto my new life as well. A jack-of-all-trades just isn’t in much demand these days. Especially if you don’t have the documentation to back you up. But the Boss, she gave me a place and my self-respect back.”

Erin began nodding at this. “Okay. I can see that. That makes sense. Not all good, not all bad, a little bit of everything. I like that.”

Anya brightened. “So what do you want to do now, Erin?”

“Actually?” She responded sheepishly. “Get some rest. I’m tired. Before I walked to the park, I had been on the road since sunrise. About seven hours hiking just today. I’m tired and could use the rest. Besides, tomorrow I can get some clothes that are better for going out in. Hiking chic just isn’t the look I think I want to be wearing when you three drag me around town. So, maybe one of you can take me shopping tomorrow?”

“Well…if one of the three of us can’t do it, I am sure we can find someone to go with you," replied Liz. “There are a couple of girls who work there who would be happy to drive you to go shopping.”

“Thanks. You three can still go out tonight. No need to let me dampen your evening. Just drop me off at my room and let me get my beauty rest,” Erin remarked with a smirk.

Anya smiled again. “Actually you are going to be staying with me. That will be a lot easier than trying to get a room out of Ronnie for the week. So we’ll get you settled and then go out. But tomorrow were going clubbing. So be ready to dance and have fun.”

The trip back was filled with the four of them chatting happily about all manner of things. The talk continued up to Anya’s apartment. Anya showed Erin around quickly. The rooms were fairly big and it was really nicely decorated. A porch opened up to a balcony that over looked the park. It was a great view.

Erin dropped her backpack on what would be her bed for the next week. Clean sheets and everything. She even liked the pretty flower sheets.

“Erin, do you have anything to sleep in?” asked Anya from the doorway of the room.

“Uh…no I used to sleep in a pair of shorts. My swim shorts.” replied Erin.

Anya chuckled at that. “Can’t have you sleeping in your bikini. Let me give you one of my nightgowns. Will that work?”

“Great. It’ll give me something to wander around the condo in.”

Anya returned quickly with a white nightgown with some nice lace trim around the neckline and the hem. Erin liked it. The cotton was soft and felt good. “There you go. Have a good night Erin. See you in the morning.”

Anya and the others said their goodbyes again and headed out again. Erin turned to her backpack as the door closed. Now to see what all changed. All of his clothes had become a feminine equivalent. Underwear, shirts, pants, sandals, everything. The rest of her stuff was unchanged. Her important books and items were intact. She had gained several sports bras and some feminine hygiene stuff, but that was all.

Erin chuckled about that. For all intents and purposes there was nothing that could connect her to Eric. When she looked at her Driver’s license it showed her new face and new information. She was impressed at the thoroughness of the old woman’s spell. It must have taken her a while to put things together into a format that would alter so much. This was really high level magic.

A yawn broke her train of thoughts. She was tired. With another yawn she padded into the bathroom and changed for bed. The release from the sports bra felt really good. She unconsciously rubbed her breasts to relax. She pulled Anya’s nightgown over her head as her panties joined her sports bra on top of her other clothes.

She took them back to her room and laid them down on the rest of her stuff. She reached into her shaving kit and found the brush she thought would be there. Another of the old woman’s changes. She smiled and began brushing her hair. It felt so good and relaxing. She just drifted with the sensation of the bristles moving over her scalp and through her hair. It was a sensation she didn’t ever remember from being Eric. It was nice, almost meditative. Her thoughts just flowed away.

She stopped brushing after a while and climbed under the sheets. She thought about all the stuff that had happened that day and laughed quietly to herself. It would be weird if it didn’t seem so normal for her. It was more tiring than anything else. She sighed and closed her eyes. Shortly her breathing slowed and she was asleep.

* * * * * * * * * * *

A hand shook her awake. Anya was standing next to the bed, in a baby doll nighty, “Hey, Erin. Want some breakfast?”

“Hummph? Uh…sure. Give me a minute to get up and I’ll be out.” Erin stumbled into the bathroom, with eyes mostly closed. The clean sheets and the comfortable mattress caused her to sleep deeper and heavier than she thought she would. She sat down on the toilet and took care of business. That in itself tickled her awareness, pulling her more awake.

Her feminine face gazing blearily at her from the mirror woke her up a whole lot more. “Wow, it was real. I still got most of a week left. Cool. At least I don’t have to shave this morning.”

She was chuckling to herself as she entered the kitchen area, where Anya was busy making some food. “There is coffee in the pot and the toast should be ready in a minute.”

“Thank you Anya. I hope you guys had fun last night?” She asked as she poured herself a cup of coffee.

“Yep. We went dancing for a little while. Lots of fun. There were some cute guys but mostly Jenny flirted with them, I danced with Liz. We’ll probably go there again tonight, after we have dinner. So you might want to get yourself some nice clothes today when you go shopping.” Anya grabbed the toast and headed to the table with the food.

Erin took her plate with a smile. “That sounds fun. I have never really danced before, mostly because I always felt that I looked stupid. Hopefully I won’t feel that way now.”

“We’ll see. When we get to the park, I’ll try and find you a ride to the mall. I am going to be busy today and the other two will be as well. One of the girls that works at the park loves shopping so I am sure I can get you a ride. Probably at around two.”

“Sounds great. I’ll just relax and lounge for a while. A nice change of pace. I guess I’ll do my morning exercises there as well. Take the time to go through the long forms for a change.”

“Long forms?” Anya wasn’t sure what she was talking about.

“You know, T’ai Chi. It’s a Taoist exercise, good for building and regulating your internal energy. It’s fun and so relaxing. The long form is over 108 moves.” Erin smiled at Anya as she talked around mouthfuls of breakfast. “If you want I can show you the short forms. They’re only about 30 or 40 moves long.”

“I’ll think about it. I could always use some more exercise. I don’t get to many chances to do that at the park. I guess that’s why I go dancing so much whenever my boyfriend hasn't been visiting the park, that is.” She smiled brightly as she thought about Greg.

“So when does the park open?”

“In about an hour and a half, at ten. I need to get there an hour early, to get everything set up, money counted. Magic only keeps the park safe; we got to do all the work ourselves.”

“Awww…poor baby. Has to work for a living. Well, I feel for you. Do I come in with you?”

“If you want. If not, you can hang out here and then walk to the park when you are ready. It’s your vacation.” They both laughed at that.

They finished up breakfast quickly. Erin washed the dishes while Anya got her shower. Erin slipped back into her bikini, courtesy of the old woman’s spell. She pulled a pair of her hemp drawstring pants on and her sandals. That done she grabbed her towel, a shirt and a change of underwear to pull on when she went shopping, and she was ready to go. In a way it felt odd to be wearing pants and the bikini top only, but in another way, it felt right.

Anya exited a moment later in shorts with a pink Bikini Beach staff shirt. She also had on a pair of sandals. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail threaded through a ball cap. She had her purse and a pair of sunglasses ready on hand. “Coming in with me?”

“Seemed easiest. Besides I get the feeling that your Grandmother would like to talk to me. So here we go.”

Liz and Jenny were waiting in the lobby for them. The four of them chatted brightly on the short walk. They all dispersed when they reached the park. Erin went to the office building and knocked on the door. She heard a faint come in from the other side.

The old woman was seated at her desk going over some paperwork and what looked like maps or blueprints. She looked up with her penetrating eyes at Erin, who seemed really comfortable in her new body. “Yes Erin. Can I help you?”

“I figured that you had some more questions for me. At least that’s what it felt like you wanted.” Erin shrugged.

The old woman chuckled a little at that. “Well, you’re right. I did want to find out about your style of magic, so I can keep a mishap like this from happening again.”

“Sure. What would you like to know?” Erin sat in her chair, bright eyed and earnest. The old woman couldn’t help but smile.

“First of all, what sort of things do you do with your magic?”

“All sorts of things. We get rid of demons, we help out those in trouble, and we fix problems in our community, all sorts of things like that. We just try to do it in a way that keeps us from being recognized as the ones who did it.”

“And how do you do that?” The old woman steepled her fingers as she leaned towards Erin.

“Well, you first learn how to feel and follow the flow of the Tao. When you feel the need to alter something you tap the flow with your chi, or internal energy and shift the current into the channel you want. It is sometimes slow as a trickle, sometimes as fast as rapids. For really tough work you prepare prayer sheets.”

“So why didn’t Anya feel your magic?”

“I guess because I was taught to keep that power close in. Taoists want to blend in, be a part of the environment, not something outside of it. Someone magic sensitive might feel you and then you are no longer just out of view. So we keep all that in close, keeping our energy and thoughts to ourselves. Less chance of being spotted.”

“Well, I guess we can safely say you learned that lesson well. Anya told me she didn’t feel or sense anything from you. Anything. You might as well have been invisible. I don’t know why she didn’t call me though?” The old woman pursed her lips as that thought ran across her mind.

“I guess this is something that the Tao wanted me to do, so it touched her and made it happen. You probably would have not let me in, right?”

“Probably. I like to know whoever comes into my park, if they have the training. That way I get no surprises like yesterday.” She grinned up at Erin with that. “So, let me get a feel for your magic so I can strengthen the wards. Did you have to do anything?”

“Not really. Here we go.” Erin opened herself fully to the Tao. The current of the energies that moved about in the earth and the heavens danced about her. She felt the rightness of what she was doing now and sensed the strength of the old woman burning like a fire next to her. The wards in the office glowed and she could feel Anya also burning off in the distance. She relaxed and lost herself to the current.

When she could tell that the old woman was done feeling the flavor of her magic she returned to a more normal energy state. She blinked owlishly, adjusting to the shift in senses. “Wow. That was a bit clearer than before. It felt good. I wonder how the Masters manage to stay in that awareness all the time.”

The old woman smiled again at the girl. “You did really well, Erin. I can now understand why she didn’t see you. Different. You don’t impose yourself on the fabric of reality. But you can make some of the changes I can without as much of a ripple effect.”

Erin shrugged. “Like I said, we want to be inconspicuous. Did that help?”

“Yes it did. Thank you. Now why don’t you go off and find your self a place to sit and rest. The weekend deluge is about to begin.”

“You’re welcome.” With that Erin left the office. She found a nice shady area by the Junior Lifeguard Academy. Liz waved to her, as her post for today was within that area. Erin waved back. This looked like a good place to spend some time. As little girls came pouring down the path towards the Academy, Erin decided to get her morning exercises done. She began to do her stretching, limbering up her whole body, warming the muscles.

After a few breathing exercises to warm the chi and get it moving, she started going through the slow progression of the T’ai Chi long form she had practiced daily for four years. Erin concentrated on keeping her breathing steady and letting her chi flow through her body. She focused on letting go and letting the energy move her. All thought left as she merged with the energy.

When she finished she noticed she had an audience of young children from the Academy. They were all looking at her kind of funny. One of them got shoved forward by the others, obviously chosen to make first contact with this odd adult. “Uh…hi. My name is Sarah. We were wondering what you were doing? It looked so graceful. Can you teach us?”

Erin smiled. “It’s called T’ai Chi. It’s an exercise from China. If you want me to teach you I can, but I’ll only be here a week.”

A dark haired girl stepped forward at this. “Why?”

“Because I am on vacation. And after that I’m not anymore.” Erin loved kids, even had as Eric. She thought their questions were funny for the most part.

“Oh. So you can teach us?” The sadness of the first statement was replaced by the excitement of the last part.

“Sure. Ready to start? First you stand like this.” For the next hour Erin took the group of preteens through the first parts of the short form. They followed along, trying to coordinate hands, feet, bodies and breathing, usually poorly. Erin finally called a halt. “Enough ladies. It’s lunchtime. Go eat and practice that. I’ll show you some more tomorrow.”

They squealed happily, yelled out their thanks and rushed off to get food like a pack of wild animals. Liz had walked up to Erin at that point. “I see you met my trouble makers.”

“Troublemakers? They all seemed like good girls?”

“Oh, they are. But they still cause me lots of grief. When they are all together they are a pack of hellions, egging each other on. I need to keep an eye on them all the time to try and curb their exuberance.” She laughed lightly. “Still, it is fun watching them. You did well, keeping their attention.”

“Teaching is not too bad if you remember to teach at your students’ level and not your own. I had fun. Helps me to remember all of the basics.”

“Well, I’m on break for lunch. Want to come with me to get some food?”

“Sounds good to me Liz.” Erin grabbed up her towel and shook the sand off. Liz led her over to one of the other eating areas. They both got lunch salads. Erin got iced tea while Liz got a diet coke.

“So Liz, you really like it here?” Erin was interested in Liz’s experiences. The admission last night that she had been a he, but had gotten rejuvenated to Liz was fascinating.

“Oh absolutely.” Liz beamed with happiness. “I have my health back, my mind back, good friends, a fun job and interesting experiences every day. That keeps the depression that helped wear me down before at bay. I remember everything from before, but now it’s not as important. Besides I enjoy being a girl. It’s fun.”

“Fun how?”

“The way my body feels is really different. And I like the way I feel when I am comforted or held by a guy I like. It is mostly the little things that get me. How about you? What do you think so far?” Liz turned the tables on Erin, putting her on the hot seat.

“It’s different. Really different. But I like it. Things feel different in a way that is hard to describe. There are also subtle things. The way energy moves through me now is different. And the way I feel the world around me is altered, almost deeper. The breadth of emotions and how physically I feel them is interesting. I’m looking forward to the rest of this week. It’s been eye opening.” Erin admitted how she felt; it felt right to do that. There was a rightness about sharing intimate thoughts and feelings now that she hadn’t felt before.

“You know if you really like it, I’m sure the Boss will make it permanent.”

“I’ll have to think about that. Two days is not a larger enough experience base to make my choice. By the end of the week I’m sure I’ll be able to answer that.” Stay this way? Erin wasn’t sure. This body felt really good and different, things seemed natural, but did she want to stay this way? Two days was not nearly enough of a base to choose.

“Oh, that reminds me. I couldn’t find anyone to take you to the mall. I can let you borrow my car if you want?”

“Sure. That should be great. I am sure I can find it and get back if I have directions.”

“I can get those to you easily enough. Let me go get my keys and the directions. I’ll meet you by the front gate. That way you can change and go, if you want. Besides I need to check in with the Boss.”

“Sure Liz. See you there.” With that she hurried off leaving Erin to clean the table of their lunch remains. After that Erin headed towards the front gate. Going shopping sounded fun. Eric had never really been shopping much except for the bare basics. Erin really was looking forward to it. Besides it had been almost four years since Eric had been to a mall. His studies had kept him too busy to do much of anything else.

Now she had a chance to see if the mall could be fun. Up ahead by the gate she spotted Anya waving. She waved back and picked up her pace to get there faster. “Hey Erin, Liz told me you were going to go to the mall in her car. Grandmother vetoed that idea and told me to escort you. Up for that idea?”

“That sounds good. Company would be nice. By and large my last couple of years have been just my Master and I. Besides you know the really nice places to go.”

“True enough. Get changed and I will meet you out by my car. Okay?”

“Okay.” With that Anya disappeared into the office. Erin turned and walked into the changing room. She was using the ladies locker room, which was quite a bit bigger. She did note that though some things had changed she still liked looking at women. Erin wasn’t sure if she could handle being totally into guys, even if it did fit the body better.

She pulled on her underwear, still amazed how nice a bra felt, when she first put it on. It held her breasts nicely. True, the sports bra was a bit confining but it gave her great support. Once she pulled her pants and top on she was ready to go. Erin slipped on her sandals and headed out of the gate. She beat Anya to the car by about a minute.

Anya walked up whistling a tune. Erin joined in when she recognized it. She did get a kick out of whistling Beethoven. The whistling soon turned into humming and noise making as they drove out of the park’s lot, belting out the Ode to Joy.

They giggled a bit over that as Anya headed towards the mall. They then sang along with the radio until they pulled into the mall parking lot. Anya managed to find a spot near the front entrance right as she pulled up. Anya smirked and stated. “Sometimes it’s good to be a witch.”

Again they giggled. Erin had forgotten how big malls were in the four years without them. This one was actually of average size, but to Erin it seemed immense. Anya headed off in one direction, all but dragging Erin along. “Okay. The way I see it, you need clothes for something other than hiking, right? Underwear, shoes everything. So we get to buy a little of everything. So let’s start from the inside out. Off to Vicky’s.”

Once they reached Victoria’s Secret, the rainbow of color that was displayed, the mixture of materials and the variety amazed Erin. Anya helped by getting a number of bras of different styles for her to try on and herded her into the changing room.

These bras felt quite different than the sports bra. The feeling of compression was gone and these held her gently but firmly. The push up bra gave her a great amount of cleavage, which she took well. Anya helped with comments as to how well they seemed to fit and look. Erin nodded to herself and grabbed three of them, including the push up bra. They then got matching underwear for all of the bras. Erin liked the smooth cool feel of the silk, the cotton ones felt nice as well.

Erin spotted a green silk nightgown that caught her eye. She didn’t want to borrow one of Anya’s nightgowns again. So after pointing it out to Anya, who agreed that it was really nice she added that to her pile as well. The paid for everything at the register and Erin was stunned at how much that little amount cost. Anya just looked at her. “Erin, that’s the way things are. Women pay top dollar for anything they get, not because they want to but because they have to. Now go change into some of your new underwear. It should be better than the sportsbra.”

Erin complied and got into her Satin bra and panties to match in green. They looked really good against her pale skin and her red hair. She posed in the mirror. She really liked how she looked. In a way she turned herself on by how sexy she looked. She felt kind of fluttery inside.

She smiled at herself and got dressed. Suddenly she filled out her shirt more than she had in her sportsbra. She shook her head, amused. Erin went out and joined Anya, dumping her sportsbra and plain cotton panties into her bag. “So where to next?”

Anya grinned at her. “Now we get you some dance clothes.”

Erin narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “Why do I suddenly feel worried?”

Anya laughed aloud. “No worries Erin. I’ll get you about what the others and I wear for dancing.”

Erin chuckled a bit at that. “Now I really am worried.”

Anya laughed some more and dragged Erin from the store. “I got a rather radical idea for you, if you let me. I think you’ll look great in it.”

“What?” Suspicion tainted Erin’s alto.

“Well, I had in mind a blue bodice I had seen at Hot Topics and a black mini skirt. Get you some low heels to go with it. I think you’ll look great in it.” Anya’s enthusiasm for the outfit showed through.

“Let’s see what it looks like first. Then we’ll decide.”

Anya dragged Erin into another store to try on different mini skirts. Apparently the choice was being made on how well they flared when Erin spun in them. Erin felt a bit self-conscious in the one they had chosen. It came to mid thigh and flared a lot when she spun, all but exposing herself to everyone. Anya said it was perfect, so she took it at that. Erin thought that changing her mind would have changed her knowledge of clothes, but it hadn’t really. So Erin found herself relying on Anya for this.

At Hot Topic Anya headed for the back of the store where the most gothic clothes Erin had ever seen in her life were hanging. Anya had gotten one of the sales people to get down a blue and black bodice that laced up in the back for her. Erin found herself ushered into another dressing room.

“Now take off your bra, put on the skirt and the bodice. I’ll lace you up.”

Erin complied with the orders. Her breasts were pushed together and up in the bodice, giving her lots of cleavage. The bodice was laced tightly and was much more confining than even the sportsbra. Erin had a little trouble getting air into her lungs, as she was unable to breathe as she had done before. It was a bit distressing.

But Anya had been right. It looked wonderful. The way her body tapered to her skirt and then flared out. It looked really good on her. Her cleavage and her legs were both displayed rather prominently. Erin was amazed at how she looked.

Anya grinned like a cat that had eaten the canary. “Like it? I thought it might look good on you.”

Erin still looked a little stunned by the effect of the clothes. “Wow. I look great.”

“So I guess we’re going to get it?” asked Anya mischievously. “I mean if you don’t want to you don’t have to.”

“Oh hush you.” Erin changed back into her hemp pants and three quarter length sleeve top with the hood. She slipped on her sandals and headed out. She bought the bodice and a t-shirt that had the words Bad Kitten on it. She thought that looked cute.

After a trip to get shoes that went with the outfit the two of them headed back out of the mall. As they neared the exit Anya looked over and looked pleased at a store that hadn’t been there when they entered. It was filled with all sorts of weird and magical looking things. Anya waved to an old man wearing a robe, who seemed to be tending the store. “Hey, how have thing been? I was wondering where you stashed your apprentice? If she was free I was going to invite her with me and the girls tonight.”

The old man’s eyes sparkled when they met hers. “Ah, Anya, no she is going to be busy tonight. But I will let her know you asked about her. And who is this?”

“My new friend Erin.”

“A customer?”

“Not really. An associate of sorts.”

He nodded sagely at that. “Well you girls be careful. Something doesn’t feel right. It is almost as if there is a malevolent storm brewing here. So keep your eyes open.”

Anya looked suddenly serious. “Anything more than that?”

“Unfortunately not. I already told your Grandmother. So she is on the lookout as well. I hope it passes but I am not sure. So stay on your toes. Now get going. I am going to have a customer soon.”

They waved bye and walked from the store. A nervous looking middle-aged businessman walked in, after giving them a quick once over. Anya shook her head as she chuckled. Erin looked over at Anya questioningly, but the other girl never answered.

Erin was surprised how much time they had actually spent in the mall. They had been shopping for about two and a half hours. And it had been fun. Eric had never had fun shopping. Ever.

“What you have will work for day wear, unless you want to wear a skirt. And then if you want we can go shopping again.”

Erin grinned toothily. “You just want another excuse to go shopping again.”

“Me?” questioned Anya, in mock innocence.

Erin shook her head. Anya was funny at times. Anya glanced over at her as she turned on the car. “Back to the park for a bit? The others get off after six.”

Erin liked that idea. “Sure, why not. And then we go out?”

“Yep. Dinner about 7:30 or 8, depending on the wait. And then to the club for some after dinner dancing.”

“Sounds like a plan to me. I can get some more exercises done.”

“What is it with you and exercise?” asked Anya.

“What! How else do you think I do my magical exercises? Taoist magic relies on a lot of physical work. It is just how it is.” Erin shrugged.

Anya just shook her head as she pulled into her parking spot. The two of them split up after the gate. Erin changed back into her bikini and took a quick shower. She then headed out towards where she had done her exercises that morning. Now it was time to do her Chi Gung work. She could even do a long set, as she wasn’t on the road. It would be nice to get back to doing the longer forms. She always felt so refreshed and revived after them.

Again she noticed she had gathered the same set of on lookers, but she didn’t stop as she had already begun. Stopping at this point would not be a bright idea. She did cut it short however. Erin took the deep centering breaths to bring her back to the now. “Yes, ladies?”

“What was that?” asked their spokes girl. “Was that more Tai Chi stuff?”

“Not really. It is called Chi Gung. They are breathing exercises.”

Another girl looked confused at that. “Why do you need exercises to breathe? Can’t everyone breathe?”

Erin smiled. “This is a way to build energy and health. You do this for long enough and you never get sick anymore. But it is too hard to teach you in a week. It would take much longer than that to get it down correctly. Besides, if you did it wrong you could hurt yourself.”

They looked wide-eyed and a bit skeptical, not sure if they could believe it or not. Erin didn’t wait for the next round of questions. “So have you practiced what I showed you earlier?”

A chorus of yeses rung out from the girls. They then began to show her what they had learned, all at different times and speeds. Erin let that go on for about a minute and then broke in. “Girls, you need to do it together and at the same speed. It looks better that way. You practice, and I will see you here tomorrow. Bye.”

The girls waved and said good-bye as Erin headed towards one of the wave pools to do some swimming before it was time to get ready to go. The water felt good and the waves gave her enough resistance that she got a good workout in a very short period of time. It felt good to strain her muscles in something other than walking. She lost herself in the swimming until the waves stopped. She looked up and saw that it looked like the park was in the process of closing. She stroked to the front and walked from the water. She dried off with her towel and headed towards the front, hoping to catch someone.

Elizabeth was heading from the Junior Lifeguard academy at that point. Erin was wondering if they were going to change at the park or rather at the condos. She hoped that Liz would have a clue. When she asked Liz she smiled and replied. “Definitely at the condos. That is where my makeup is at any rate. And I want to do my hair. And I haven’t decided what to wear yet. So condos it is.”

“That will work. I can change into what I bought today there and do something with my hair at the same time.”

“So what did you buy?”

“You’ll see soon enough. It looks really nice. Anya picked it out for me. Different but nice.” Teased Erin.

“Fine, be that way. So you soon.” Liz split off and headed off to the office.

Anya was waiting for Erin in the locker room. “Here are the keys. I’ll meet you at the apartment once I get done here. That way you can get the first shower.”

“Okay.” Erin took the keys and headed off. She got her stuff out of the car and entered the condos. She got into the shower and shampooed and conditioned her hair. She used one of Anya’s scented soaps, one that smelled of lavender. There was also a body lotion that smelled the same, so she would use that after she got out. She checked her legs and decided that she needed to shave them. That didn’t take her too long as she didn’t have very much hair growth yet. As she finished up in the shower, rubbing in the last of the lotion on her arms Anya came in.

“Done yet Erin?” Anya called out as she moved down the hall.

“Just finished. I boworowed some of your lavender lotion if that’s okay?”

“Sure. Like you have a lot of stuff to take care of yourself in your pack.”

“Well…there is that.” Erin walked out with a towel wrapped around her as Anya walked in.

“I’ll be out in a minute. You get dressed. I should have some makeup you can borrow.”

Erin went into her room to get dressed. She pulled on a pair of blue panties she had bought and worked herself into the bodice. Once she had pulled on the mini skirt and slipped on her heels, she heard the shower shut off.

Anya exited a short bit later in a short robe. Erin liked the look, as apparently her original sex drive hadn’t been altered. In a way she was fairly thankful for that. So far she hadn’t discovered anything too different from how she had been as Eric. But she also knew that she hadn’t really been in too many positions to check. Tonight would be the test.

Anya chatted from the other room as she got dressed, telling Erin all about the club they would be going to, the music and the guys. Finally she called Erin in so she could do her makeup. Erin had only put on her foundation, as her new memories didn’t include the wearing of very much makeup.

Erin paid attention as Anya did her blush, and eye shadow. She followed directions for her eyeliner and mascara. Then she used a lip liner and brushed lipstick onto her lips. When Anya moved from in front of her she could see how good she looked. Erin was stunned. She looked gorgeous. Anya smirked at that shocked look on Erin’s face and pushed her out of the way so she could do her own makeup.

Erin was still a little stunned when she saw the total effect in the full-length mirror on the back of Anya’s bedroom door. Eric would have definitely gone after her. Not a question in her mind at all about that one.

Anya walked out to find Erin still staring at herself. “You look really hot Erin. For a bit of a jock you clean up really well. You would probably look great in a cocktail dress as well.”

Erin turned towards Anya, the disbelief and doubt was clear in her voice. “You really think so?”

“Erin, sweetie, you look fabulous. You really do. Trust your eyes, not what your mind is saying. You look great.” Anya emphasized the last sentence to get it into Erin’s head completely. “Now, let’s get going. I am sure the others are waiting for us downstairs. Liz and Jenny are going to die when they see how good you look.”

With a quick hug for reassurance Anya and Erin headed to the lobby where the others were waiting. When they got down there both of the girls’ complimented Erin on how good she looked and how nice the outfit was. They piled into Liz’s car and headed back to the soup and salad place they had eaten at before. Soon the four of them were chatting freely at their table. Erin began to relax, as things just felt so totally normal. Here she was, just one of the girls.

All too soon they were back in the car and heading to the club where the three others liked to hang out and dance. They could hear they music as they neared the door and readied their ID’s. The bouncer didn’t even look twice at Erin’s ID. That let here breathe a sigh of relief and Anya caught it. “Don’t worry. Grandmother and I do good work.”

Erin looked pointedly at herself, Liz and Jenny before she spoke up. “So I see.”

Anya slapped her playfully on the arm. “That’s not what I meant.”

“I know, but it is still true.”

They found a table with easy access to the dance floor. Erin wasn’t too sure about that but the others were. She wasn’t about to argue too much as she had no experience at all in clubs. The music was really loud and she had to raise her voice to be heard over its noise. Jenny went up and got them all drinks. She returned quickly with them all tangled in her hands, requiring help to get them all placed on the table smoothly.

Once that was accomplished they sat a few minutes longer until the music changed. The dance tune filled the air with its beats and hard pounding rhythm. The other three dragged her onto the floor and they began to dance to the music. Erin just let herself move to the music, not really trying to look graceful or anything. With her years of martial arts and T’ai Chi looking graceful came easily. She did have to agree that it was fun to just let go and move with the current of the music.

And let go she did and felt the energy of the room begin to move and swirl within her. She opened her eyes and noticed that there was a good-sized grouping around the four of them. Anya was staring at her as if trying to tell her to stop whatever it was that she was doing. Erin smiled apologetically and mouthed sorry to her. She reigned in her energy, separating it from the current of the room. Erin and Anya made their way out, back to their seats. The energy changed a bit but with all the other people involved it kept moving.

Once they got back to the table Anya looked at her and hissed out, “What were you doing?”

“Sorry. I just let go and moved to the energy of the music. I didn’t know it was going to do that. Sorry.” Erin sipped at her drink, the cool liquid helped. This was the most vigorous activity she had done in months.

“You managed that by just letting go?” Anya looked disbelievingly.

“Yes. And that embarrasses me. Master Shinju would chide me for influencing people like that without purpose. It just felt good to let go however.” Erin blushed a little and sipped some more of her drink. “We manipulate energy in that sort of fashion, by letting ours flow out, merge with and change the currents around us. The results are usually fairly unexpected, until you have been doing this for years. My Master can alter what is going on in a room with a mere turn of a finger.”

“So that is what you do with your magic? Change the current of things?” Anya seemed interested in this. It was different from what both she and Grandmother did, which was much more direct.

“Yep. For situations, people, pretty much anything you want to effect. It just takes an understanding of the nature and flow of the Chi around you and how to shift the flow.”

“That sounds like something from a movie. You know the one with the little green wizened Muppet.” She laughed at that.

Erin joined in as well. “Well, I was told some Master wanted to get people more involved in this so he spoke with a young director and the rest as they say is history.”

This got them both laughing. Liz and Jenny made it back in time to see them laughing heavily. “What?”

Anya waved aside the question. “Nothing.”

Further conversation was stopped by the arrival of the first batch of men for the evening. They asked the ladies if they wanted to dance. They agreed with smiles and headed back to the dance floor. Drinks got refilled on the men’s tab and the evening progressed. Erin was amazed by how much attention she was getting. It was definitely not something she was used to. But it was fun.

The night wore on and one of the guys stayed with Erin more than any of the others. She liked his attention; it made her feel warm inside. The feel of his arms around her as they slow danced was nice as well. When his lips met hers she was a bit surprised but let herself go with the moment.

His lips were a bit rougher than hers and they pressed into hers with a fair amount of force. She sighed with the feeling and this parted her lips a little. Taking it as an invitation he began to french kiss her. The whole thing felt wonderful and she felt as if a fire had kindled inside of her. That warmth filled her body. Her breasts tingled and yearned to be touched with her nipples crinkling tightly. Her arms pulled him close as she drank in the feel of his kiss.

When they broke he smiled at her and said good night. She watched him walk away, noting how he filled out his jeans. When Jenny touched her arm she let out a little squeak of surprise. Jenny smiled and motioned for her to come back to the table where the other two had broad smiles on their lips. “Having fun Erin?”

Her only response was a smile. “I guess you could say that.”

Erin enjoyed the feel of the kiss and the odd sense of security that being held brought. She was kind of confused since she had never had any feelings for men when she had been Eric mere days ago. She still felt warm inside; her heart was still beating fairly fast. It had been racing happily during the kiss. This was going to take some time getting used to. Part of her was even wondering what sex itself would be like in her new body. She smiled a little to herself as the thoughts went a bit graphic. After all, she mused, she had been trained in the sexual arts.

They returned home shortly after that and Erin got ready for bed. Anya came into her room after she slid the silk nightgown on. Anya was also in her nightgown. “You looked a touch confused and I wondered if you wanted to talk about it?”

“A little. This is all so different from before. I felt comforted in his arms, and I have never felt that way before. And I have never been interested in guys before.”

“Well, right now you are a woman, totally. Like able to get pregnant and the whole works. So you felt an attraction for a man? So what? It is a part of who you are right now. I like being held. It is one of the most wonderful feelings. I think women are just hardwired for touch.” Anya shrugged and sat down next to Erin. She pulled the other girl into a hug and held her for a few minutes.

Erin relaxed into it and enjoyed the feeling. She felt her desire beginning to stir as she nuzzled against Anya’s neck. She just let the feeling sit, as she had no intention to try anything that might upset Anya. But Erin felt a bit better knowing that she was still interested in girls. It felt more normal somehow.

Anya broke the hug and kissed Erin on the forehead. “Do you want me to wake you in time to get to the park early?”

“Please. I can do my forms again. It was nice.” They shared smiles and Anya let Erin slide into bed and drift into sleep.

* * * * * * * * * * *

Erin woke before Anya had come in because her sleep had been troubled. Between the erotic dreams of her and Anya and her and that guy from last night as well as some sort of foreboding she had not slept very well. She sat against the headboard with the covers tucked about her. She was not very sure of things, as her mind seemed to be in a bit of turmoil with the dreams. She was unsure how she should feel. Was she Eric still or was she now Erin? Her memories of being Eric were still there, but somehow they felt less real right now. And that was giving her some problems.

She padded into the kitchen in her bare feet and fixed herself a cup of tea. Her Master usually recommended using tea to help work out problems. As she sat on the balcony sipping her drink, watching the sunrise she realized that her teacher probably had a good idea there. She just sat and relaxed, letting her thoughts drift free for the time being. Her confusion and unease faded as she just watched the world wake up.

Anya found her there several hours later. “Erin? Are you okay?”

“Sure. Just watching the sunrise and thinking.”

“About what?”

“Do you really want to know or are you just being polite?” Erin said this politely and not at all bitter. That was a nice trick.

“I want to know. Honest.” Anya sat down in a chair next to Erin, who continued to sip her tea.

“Okay. All of this is confusing me quite a bit. Between erotic dreams of you and I and that guy from last night and I, as well as the fact that I am not sure who is real Erin or Eric? So I was out here watching the sunrise and trying to figure things out.” She related thing easily, as she was not nearly as emotionally tangled as she had been upon waking up.

“Well, technically, you are Erin right now. And that is basically Eric in a female body more keyed to doing things as a woman. As for the sex dreams, I don’t know what to say. Are you enjoying yourself right now?” Anya asked.

“That is part of the problem I think. I am really enjoying myself, more so than I ever have as Eric. And that is rather confusing. The sex thing is frustrating and I don’t know what to do there. I really like you and I would enjoy making love to you, but I don’t know how you feel about the whole thing and then there is the fact that I am interested in trying things with a man.” Erin opened up. Talking with Anya might help her thoughts to gel and make some kind of sense.

“I really like you Erin but I am in a committed relationship. However, if you want to play with girls, try Jenny. As to the other, why not give it a try? It would at least be a change of pace for you. But first come here.” Erin moved over and Anya gave her a hug. “Relax some more. Just have fun. You are already moving through this fairly well. Counting today, you have five days left. You may not want to turn back or maybe you will want to. Why not make that decision after this is over, when you actually have some perspective?”

Erin hugged her back. They smiled at each other and hugged again. Anya stood and looked down at Erin. “Want some breakfast? If we get going now we can go get bagels and get back to the park just in time for me to get to work on time. Sound good?”

“Sure. Let me grab my stuff and I’ll be ready to go.”

Shortly the two of them were on their way back with bagels and coffee. Anya parked and the two of them walked into the park. Anya waved bye as she entered the women’s bathroom and showered and got ready for another day in the park. She pulled on her bikini and wrapped her towel about her waist. She decided that she was going to get a different suit today from the suit store in the park and maybe a cover-up.

As she headed out the first of the days customers began to filter in. One of the girls from the other day spotted her and waved. Erin waved back and headed for the spot where she had done her T’ai Chi yesterday. She would go through another long form today she thought. She began her stretching, adding some of the yoga she learned. She was amazed at her new level of limber. It was rather nice.

Once again, after she finished her workout the girls were there watching her. She smiled at them. “Ready to learn some more?”

They all nodded and lined up behind her, with only a little jostling and playful pushing. Erin led them through the first things they had learned. They all mostly had it remembered. She made minor corrections to their forms and went through it a few more times to make sure that they had learned it. Then she led them into some more of the form. She ended the class when it was about lunchtime. They complained but she told them that they would keep going tomorrow.

After they left she headed to one of the places to get some food and had another salad for lunch. It was fairly good and she enjoyed it. Then she went and bought herself a one-piece suit that she figured would be easier on her when she swam laps later today. She also grabbed a cover up that went with both her bikini and her one piece. She took the bags to her locker and then went to laze about on the inner tube river that flowed about the park.

After a while she had enough relaxing and wanted to do some laps in the wave pool. She went and changed and headed out there. She waved to Elizabeth, who was working the wave pool today. She did her laps and enjoyed the feeling. The new suit was easier to do laps in as it held her breasts in unlike her bikini top. She decided to lounge in the hammocks again. So after toweling off and putting on her cover-up she laid down again.

In the comfort of the shade she turned her thoughts to all the events that had been happening to her since this transformation. What would Master Shinju say with her turbulent thoughts? He would probably smack her lightly in the head and ask her to simplify. But in this how could she?

As she let her thoughts drift an idea came to her. It was one of the first exercises the she had ever learned. A way for the student to begin to feel themselves. It was a little bit of T’ai Chi, a little bit of Chi Gung and a bit of visualization and meditation. By focusing on the Tan Tien energy center below the belly button and delving inside it the student could find their true center and true selves. It was not an easy exercise but it was a way for her to simplify her problem.

She got up and stood out of the way of the hammock and began to move, letting her chi simply flow out, with no restraints on it. As she could feel it moving about her, with its own currents and eddies she began the process of focusing it inside. Her hands slowly pulled the energy inside her till it was centered in her Tan Tien. As she slowed her breathing more and moved her hands in the correct circular motion, stirring her energy he continued the visualization that would lead her inside herself and into her core.

As the whole thing deepened she felt herself centering tighter and tighter until she was at the core of her being. She relaxed into that and felt herself then, whole and complete. The feel of her energy was different in this form, as she had noted before, but there was a depth and change in the timbre of the energy. It flowed through her much more naturally and easier than it ever had. The feminine body she had felt more true than her masculine body had. Erin let herself get lost in that feeling before her confusion and surprise threw her out of her focus. She just let herself just be for a bit before she let her energy flow back out into the body and then beyond.

She blinked back into the real world and found the old woman looking at her. Erin almost started but only smiled. “Yes, can I help you?”

“Actually you can. I need you and Anya in my office. I came to get you.”

Erin to tell the seriousness of the tone and it was rather alarming. “Is something wrong?”

“Yes. I want to tell you both at the same time so I do not have to repeat myself.” She turned on her heels and headed to her office. Erin followed, almost dragged along by the force of the old woman’s resolve. Soon enough both her and Anya were seated in the old woman’s office.

Anya asked the first question. “Grandmother, what is this about?”

“Do you both remember the warning, that something was afoot in the area. Something powerful and not exactly kind?”

The two girls looked at each other and then at the old woman and nodded. She continued. “It has become a bit clearer. What ever it is, it is preying on young women. It is rape, blood magick and feels fairly demonic. I found out that one of our clients was brutally raped last night and cut up fairly bad. She is currently in the hospital. I want the two of you to go out and try to find what ever is the cause of this and try and stop it. I will be busy trying to protect what women I can, but I am afraid it will probably only extend to those who have come to the park. Do you two think you can do this?”

They both nodded. Anya asked, “Where was she picked up from?”

“From a popular singles bar. That is all I was able to get. But it does give you two a number of places to start with. Catch them and get rid of them.” The old woman’s voice was cold and held no pity for whomever they caught.

They got up and headed outside. They stood next to the door to the office building and looked at each other. “So I guess we are going to clubs tonight. I think your miniskirt and your t-shirt will be fine. It is more playful than alluring but who cares. Is there anything you need to do to get ready?”

Erin thought briefly. “Yes. I need to make up a couple of prayer sheets and I think we need to calm down and get some food first. The sheets should take me about an hour.”

“Okay. That will give me time to clean up and then once you are done you can get cleaned up. Then we can go and find whoever this is and deal with them.”

Erin grabbed her stuff from her locker and headed back towards the condo. She met Anya on the way and the two of them entered the apartment. As Anya was busy showering and getting ready, Erin grabbed her calligraphy brushes and her rice paper. He centered and let her chi flow into the characters she was brushing onto the sheets. She made both anti-demon and anti-demonic objects prayer sheets. It never hurt to be ready for whatever circumstances would arise. She also grabbed her brush pen and several sheets of rice paper just in case she had to write anything in a hurry.

Once she was done, Anya walked out looking fairly sexy but still practical in her outfit. The miniskirt was nice and her top showed a lot of cleavage. Her perfume also hung nicely in the air, smelling of roses. Erin took the time to shower and wash her hair, using Anya’s shampoo again. She rubbed in the same lotion she had used before, letting that scent mingle with her own. She dressed quickly and headed out to where Anya was pacing like a wild animal, ready to hunt.

“Ready to go, Erin?” she asked after she stopped.

“As ready as I will ever be for this.” Erin grinned weakly. “I had hoped for a vacation, but instead get all of this. Lovely.”

Anya linked arms with Erin and headed towards the door. “Hey, we have been having fun and after we deal with this we can have fun again. No problem.”

Erin smiled as well and the two of them headed to the car and from there to the first club to go hunting for the disturbance. They did not stay long as nothing there felt out of place. They had both wanted to stay as they music was nice and a couple of guys had already smiled at them. They also had no luck at the next three clubs they went to. The evening felt like it was going nowhere.

Anya sighed in frustration from the front seat of her car. “This does not seem to be getting us anywhere. Do you have any ideas?”

Erin scratched her head in thought, running her hands through her long red hair. “Tell you what, you drive and I will give you directions. I mean at this point can it really hurt?”

Anya thought about it for a moment. “Not that I can think of. Let’s give it a shot.”

Twenty minutes later the two of them pulled up to a small club by the local college. They opened the doors and stood there for a moment. The feel of the air itched their skin and they did not feel all that good. The two of them shared a look and nodded to each other. “I guess this is the place.”

The two of them took several deep breaths and centered themselves to be ready for anything. They walked in the club, noting that them bouncer did not really seem all there. The inside of the club seemed darker than was usual, the music beating out louder. They could not see very far.

A wave of nausea and blackness rolled over the two of them and they found that they seemed unable to move. Anya reached out with her magick and tried to affect her surroundings. The bouncer knocked her in the back of the head with a sap, knocking her unconscious. Erin started chanting lightly, under her breath, so that the vibrations filled her chest. She regained her freedom of movement but did not move. When the command to move forward was felt she complied.

Due to her focus and control she was able to keep from gasping in shock as she could see what was occurring on the small dance floor. It seemed to be some kind of orgy, with men and women embracing each other and others of their same sex. They all had they same terrified and haunted look in their eyes. Erin could feel the same compulsions that were working to try and compel her working on the crowd.

The only two seated, and watching the events unfold turned to look at her. The bouncer laid Anya down next to her. As she looked over at them she noticed that it was the two college boys that had stared at her at the soup and salad place her first day in her new body. They apparently recognized her as well. “Hey, isn’t that the bitch from two days ago?”

“She looks it. Shall we have her join the show or have something more private?” the second took a drink from his beer.

“Maybe something private. The show is nice and I like letting them know what is going on. Let her mostly go and let’s she what her response will be. That should be fun.” He took a pull from a bottle of whiskey as he finished. They both laughed.

The second pulled out some sort of gold talisman from under his shirt. “I like that. Talisman let this red head before us be free.”

She felt the magical grip on herself fade. Erin figured she would have to act this out well or they would really try to use the talisman against her. She gasped out in what she hoped would be fear. She looked to both sides rapidly, as if looking for a way to escape. She took in her surroundings better and the beginnings of a plan began to form in her mind.

Things had gone bad quickly and she wanted to have her wits about her. The talisman was probably the source of the power these two seemed to wield as it reeked of the demonic. It was probably beginning to take control of them as well. That would be both good and bad. If she could just get one of her prayer sheets to hit the talisman… but right now she was going to play their little game until her moment to act arose.

The two of them laughed. “Hey there. I think it is time for us to play a game. Yo, muscles. Come here.”

The bouncer complied and headed over. “Grab the girl you brought in by the throat. Good boy. Now…do we have your attention, Red? You are going to strip for us or muscles there will kill your friend.”

Erin cursed inside. She could take out the bouncer easily enough and maybe get them as well, but she was not sure. They would be able to use the talisman if she did. It would be difficult for her to try and accomplish both actions. She hesitated for a moment. “Well, if you are not going to play I guess we will just have to kill your friend…”

The malice in the voice convinced her that they were not kidding. She knew she had to act. She slowly laid down her purse so that the opening was wide. She could try to get at her prayer sheets if she had the chance. She then began to pull her t-shirt off. “What…no dancing. Can’t have a striptease without dancing.”

Erin began to sway after glaring angrily at the two. This could actually work to her advantage. She used the movement to build up some more power. She pulled her t-shirt up and over, letting it drop next to her. She then slowly began to work her mini-skirt down. She turned her back on the two as she bent and stepped out of them. She was left in her white bra and panties. She figured her moment for action would come when she flung her bra off. At least that was her plan.

She unclasped the bra and held the cups in place with her hands, trying to act shy and hesitant. The two of them were leering and drinking and seemed to be really enjoying her show. She saw her opening and flung her bra right at the one wearing the talisman. As his eyes tracked it she pivoted on one foot and shot a hand into the throat of the bouncer who was holding Anya. The bouncer’s gasp and stumble backwards let her use her chi to augment her push. The bouncer flew back ten feet and slammed into the wall.

She spun, dove down and plucked out one of her prayer sheets. Erin flung it, backed by the force of her chi. The rice paper sheet flew straight for the one with the talisman, but he dodged and sprinted from the building, cursing. His friend was not so lucky. It struck him in the chest and burst with white light. That one fell to the ground. She turned and watched the door close. By the time she made it to the door the screech of tires let her know he had gotten away.

Erin cursed in her frustration and turned, rushing back to Anya who was starting to come out of things. As Anya shook her head to clear it, apparently the others under the talisman’s control were coming to as well from the sobs and screams coming from the dance floor. Anya used her magic to put them all into a sleep so she could recover more. Erin ran behind the bar and grabbed some water for both of them.

Anya took her bottle and began to drink, as Erin began to get dressed. She pulled her miniskirt on first and then brushed off her bra. She quickly put that and her t-shirt on. Anya looked at her. “What happened? I remember feeling that thing when I blacked out.”

“The bouncer hit you. They let me go and made me strip for them, using the bouncer to threaten you to make me comply. All those people out there were not enjoying the orgy. I saw a chance to deal with things and I took it. I only stopped one of them. The other took off.” Erin sat down heavily, the adrenalin of the fight draining out of her. She drank deeply from her own water.

“Thanks. I guess I should better deal with all of these people. Do you know how they are doing this?” Anya stood and began to frame her mind around what she wanted. She figured that they would all appreciate not remembering the events of tonight. She set it in her mind, along with them all being clothed in what they wore at the start of the evening.

Erin watched as Anya cast her spell, noting the differences between what she did and her own style of magic. She felt the power build, stretch out, settle and then in the next moment the club was alive again as if nothing happened. All Erin could respond with was “Wow!”

Anya smiled and the two of them grabbed their prisoner. They carried him out to their car with the help of the now conscious bouncer with the story that their friend had gotten a little too drunk. The two of them headed back to the park, wanting a break from the night’s excitement.

Erin spoke into the silence. “They have some sort of talisman. That seems to be what is giving them the power to do these things. I would say it is probably demonic. It seems to be changing them as they use it.”

Anya nodded. “Lovely. So unless we can manage to get the drop on the other one he can use it to do whatever he wants. Grandmother will really love this.”

When they pulled up to the park’s employee entrance, the old woman was there waiting for them. They hauled the guy out of the back and carried him into the office. He was quite heavy. They dumped him into a chair and the old woman bound him with magic. “Erin, could you please wake him. It was your spell that knocked him out so I guess you should be the one to wake him up.”

Erin shrugged and walked up to the man. She jabbed her thumb into the soft spot just behind the ear. With a yelp he awoke. His eyes were full of panic when he noted where he was. He struggled but was firmly bound. He lashed out with his words. “What the fuck are you doing!? Let me go, you dumb bitches!”

Erin whipped her hand out and slapped him forcefully. His head rocked under the hit and his eyes grew even wider. She turned to face the old woman and smiled at her. “I think he is ready to talk.”

Grandmother arched an eyebrow at her, but Erin merely shrugged. “You and your friend have some sort of Talisman. What is it and where did you get it?”

“I don’t have to tell you anything. I know my rights. Where is my lawyer?” The boy looked about frantically.

Grandmother leaned in closer at that point, locking eyes with him. “What makes you think that we are the police? What makes you think you have any rights with us?”

His face grew white with fear and the realization that he was not being held by the police. “Uh…I don’t know what you are talking about? If you let me go…uh… I won’t press charges.”

Erin smiled coldly at him. She was getting tired of this guy already and they just started. She figured she would try and scare him into talking. “Tell you what sport. Let me see if I can make this easier for you to understand. If you cooperate, we will let you live. If not, well they would have to work to identify your body.”

If anything his face grew whiter still. As the fear peaked through his body, Grandmother wrapped him in a spell that worked its way through what protections the Talisman had placed on him. He slumped a bit as the energy hit and his eyes half closed. “So, as I asked earlier young man, tell me about this talisman you and your friend have.”

His voice was slow and thick, almost as if he was drugged. “John found this guy the next town over who sold all sorts of weird things. So he came and got me and we went. John saw the talisman and thought it was cool. The owner of the shop said that it would let you control other peoples thoughts and that the longer you had it the stronger it would be. So we came over to this town and decided to give it a try. It barely worked the first couple of times, but the old guy had been right the next day it was stronger. We could get people to do as we asked. Then we could do small groups. Today we tried a slightly larger group.”

Grandmother looked over at Anya and Erin worriedly. “So where are the two of you staying in town?”

“We moved out of our motel today. John said we would find someone’s house to take over tonight. That was the plan.” He slumped deeper into the chair.

Anya shrugged. “I guess we have to keep hunting him, but we know what to look for. That should make it easier. If we had known earlier it would have made the search a bit easier.”

The other two nodded. Erin gestured with her head towards their prisoner. “So, what are we going to do with him?”

Grandmother’s smile was cold and her eyes hard when she answered. “Give him a shower.”

* * * * * * * * * * *

Anya and Erin headed into the park, towards the hot tubs. After everything that had gone on that night the two of them wanted to soak and let their tensions float away. They had grabbed towels and left the unconscious prisoner with Grandmother, who had told them that she was going to figure out the best punishment for him.

They both slipped out of their clothes and into the hot water. Erin had glanced appreciatively as Anya had undressed and found herself becoming a bit aroused. She recognized the effect from other fights and wondered if Anya was feeling it as well, if she did this was going to be a fun evening. The two of them laid back against the sides of the tub, letting the heat and the jets do their work.

Just as Erin was contemplating doing something Anya sighed contentedly and muttered, “I wish Greg were here.”

“Greg?” asked Erin as she tried to relax from being ready to do something.

“Yeah. He’s my boyfriend, the reason I didn’t want to play with you. But right now he and a friend of his are doing some sort of photo shoot, so I don’t get to see him until he comes back next weekend.” Anya sighed. “By the way, thank you for saving me. I had my guard down when I got hit. Thanks.”

Erin blushed a little and shrugged slightly. “That’s alright Anya. What was I going to do, leave my new best friend to some demonic thug?”

They both smiled happily at each other. Anya broke the silence. “So, are we going to find the other guy tomorrow?”

Erin nodded. “I think that would be a good plan. My guess is that he will be holed up until nighttime, when he will probably be trying to find someone to play with. We should be able to find him then. So I was going to spend another day goofing off in the park.”

Anya splashed her. “What! And leave me to work in the salt mines all day. You are such a cruel heartless bitch at times.”

Erin splashed back. “So what. This is my vacation. A girl’s got to enjoy the time she has.”

They both laughed and pulled themselves from the tub. The dried quickly and pulled on their clothes. Once back at the apartment they had a cup of herbal tea and went to sleep.

Erin woke early again so she could watch the sun rise. She did some of her Chi Gung exercises to pull in some of the strength of the sun. It helped her to feel even more revived than the sleep had. She fixed her self a bagel and a mug of tea for breakfast and thought about the situation she was in now. This fight against the demonic talisman was going to be rough but it should be workable. No, it was really the fact that she was utterly enjoying herself in the body she wore now that was getting to her.

She had not really expected to be enjoying the body she now had as much as she was. Her connection to the currents of the Tao seemed easier in this form and she enjoyed the way she now moved. She also found the occasional glances she had been getting from both women and men to be nice. It felt nice and to a degree right. She was beginning to think about possibly making this change permanent after her other pass expired.

She saw Anya pad into the bathroom and begin the process of waking up, showering and the like. Erin finished drinking her tea, put the cup in the sink and went to get ready for the day ahead.

She pulled on her bikini and pulled on her pants. Erin liked how she looked and that in itself was confusing. She was supposed to be a man, or at least that was what she had started out as. Now she was not that sure. Erin figured that meditation and lying in a hammock thinking would be good ways to find the answers.

Anya came out dressed for work, in her shorts and park t-shirt. “Ready for another day of sun?”

Erin smiled back, “You bet. I figure that tonight I might be able to find the guy based off of the impressions his friend has of him and the demon taint on him.”

Anya nodded as the walked towards the elevator. “That sounds like a good plan. And since we have a better idea of what we are dealing with we can fight against it better. Hopefully it will all work out alright.”

“It should. We know what we are going against and he doesn’t. He is probably under the thrall of the talisman and so is even more limited. So we have that going for us as well. If we had a third with us we could really do a number on him. But we already outnumber him as it is. I only hope we out power him.” Erin shrugged. “But we can worry about that later. I am going to have some more fun before I have to worry about that, so I can recharge.”

They split up as they reached the park, with Anya heading towards the office and Erin heading towards the spot where she had been doing her Tai Chi. She had about an hour before the park would open up. Plenty of time for her to go through the really long form she had been taught. That would help recharge her internal batteries and get her ready to face the demon.

She pushed all of that out of her mind as she breathed in deeply and began her form. She would at least have an hour of total peace today. She lost herself in the movement and began to pull out of the meditation when she heard the first sounds of the crowds beginning to enter the park. She finished up and then sat, waiting for the troupe of girls to show up. She did not really have to wait long.

“Ready to learn some more?” she asked.

The chorus of girls made her smile. Erin led them through the series of exercises easily, correcting their moves, as was necessary. After a short while, she stopped and ushered them off; it was time to take care of herself. She still needed to do some work to recharge her energies for the hunt tonight. That and she wanted to review everything she knew about demons and the demon tainted. There was actually a lot that her teacher had gone over.

She found a place in the park where she could sit in meditation under a steady stream of water. It wasn’t as good as a waterfall, but it was a fairly good second place. She folded herself into lotus position and let the water drift her away.

She felt Anya approach after some length of time. She opened her eyes and saw her through the water. “Hey, Erin, lunch time. If you’re done let’s go.”

Erin unfolded her legs and walked over to where Anya stood while wiping the water from her face and hair. “What’s with the sitting under the water?” asked Anya.

Erin shrugged. “It’s easier to clean your energy this way and it is great at helping clear your thoughts away. I just needed to take some time away from things and think.”

“About what? Tonight?” Anya had grabbed some salads and drinks and brought them to a bench nearby before grabbing Erin. They headed over and sat down to eat.

“No. I wish it were something that simple. It’s about the fact that I am really happy and comfortable in this body, almost more so than I was in my original form. I like this body and that is making me a little bit confused. Do I want to stay this way or not? I don’t know so I am trying to find the answer.” said Erin as she picked up her drink.

“Any luck so far?”

“Nope. But hey, I don’t need to hurry yet. Still have a couple more days to dwell on it before I really need an answer. In all truth, we have some more important things to worry about. But it is always there, in the back of my head. I just wish I knew what the best course of action is?”

Anya chuckled a little at that. “Aren’t you the one who keeps telling me that you should go with what feels natural and right?”

Erin chuckled as well. She felt a little embarrassed to have had that pointed out to her. The way of the Tao was in subtlety and natural sensations unhindered by any blocks. She was still trying to work on that. “Your right. I am rushing things again. I just need to let the answer reach me in its own time. Thanks Anya. You’re a real friend.”

“Hey, it’s what I do.”

After lunch, Erin went back to the apartment. There were a few more things she wanted to do before she had to deal with the demon. She got out her calligraphy supplies and made a few more of the prayer sheets. Those would come in handy. She also reached in the backpack and pulled free two bundles. She first unwrapped her sword and looked it over. The deep rich wooden scabbard seemed fine and the forge marks on the blade rippled in the light. The other bundle was her sacred texts. She read several passages from the Tao Te Ching and then cast an augury.

The coins clattered against each other as she cast them out. Once she had the pattern, she consulted the I Ching respectfully. It comforted her fretting and gave her some more insight as to the nature of the demon they were facing. It was much more familiar with the workings of the western magicks and would be confused by the workings of the more eastern. He would also use the amulet to get more people to protect the wielder, that or find some place of power. The biggest weakness it was facing was the wielder, and his drives and urges.

If they could keep that in mind, Erin and Anya could use that to their advantage. If not, she had her sword and was ready to do whatever had to be done to stop this thing. She had been forced to use her blade before and would have no qualms using it now. She nodded and placed her sacred texts away. She began to get ready for tonight.

* * * * * * * * * * *

When Anya made it back to the apartment, Erin was dressed for the evening. She was wearing a black pair of Yoga pants and a tight patterned tank top, with Indian and Chinese motifs printed on it. She also had an amulet around her neck that didn’t seem to sit in any pattern long, but kept changing fluidly. Anya liked it.

“Well Erin, you look ready to go.”

“I wanted to be completely ready for whatever got thrown at us tonight, which is why I got out my sword.” Erin brought forth her sheathed sword from behind her back. “It ends tonight, and hopefully I won’t have to use this, but I will be ready.”

Anya nodded and went to get ready herself. Erin had a mug of tea, from a bag of leaves that she had been given by her teacher. The subtle flavor of the leaves, combined with their scent cleared her head and settled her nerves. There was a mug steeping for Anya. After all, it couldn’t hurt.

Anya accepted her glass when she got out of the back. She had dressed similarly to Erin, ready to fight if needed. She had a dagger in her left hand. “If you were going to bring out the big guns, I figured I should as well. It does feel more comforting than I thought it would.”

They both smiled and finished their tea and headed out to the car. Anya drove while Erin was searching for the energy feel of the talisman. “Anya, don’t let him touch you with the talisman. It could pass the taint on to you. If it tries to go physical, let me fight it while you support me. I have training in how to fight these things. If it has minions, deal with them and I can deal with the talisman and its host. I do not think it is one of the greater powers but if it is than I will have to kill the host. Without the host the talisman will be inert.”

Anya nodded. “You seem to know what you are doing. No problem.”

Erin led them away from the city to a tree filled park. Anya stopped the car and turned off the engine as they both looked out at the deeper dark under the trees. “This is not going to help,” muttered Erin.

“Why would it choose some place out of the way? This doesn’t make sense.”

Erin thought for a moment but could think on no easy reason for the choice. Perhaps it had found its place of power. She tapped into the current around her. The earth dragon energy let her know there was no special power here. “Might as well find out what it wants.”

They both got out of the car and began to head into the trees. They were eerily quiet. Neither could hear any sound. Erin’s perception of the talisman began to fade and then vanish the deeper they went. She held up a hand to stop Anya. “Careful, the Talisman has altered the woods, to mirror its own realm. If there is anything you can do to counter that please do.”

As Anya began to shape her will to that purpose, the trees came to life. Erin snapped her blade out and tried to protect Anya from the reaching branches and roots. She sliced through several when some roots began to wrap her legs. Anya seemed to finish when she too was entangled in branches and roots. They were both lifted off the ground and held spread-eagled. Erin sighed, “Great, the host is a Hentai fan. Tentacle sex from trees, how unoriginal. Get ready Anya, this is sure to be unpleasant.”

A figure stepped into their vision. He was holding the talisman securely. He chuckled evilly. “I am sure it is going to be unpleasant. I figured you two bitches would come looking for me, so I made us a little place to have some fun. But, Erin is it, I will start with you. You have been giving me a hard time.” He rubbed his crotch suggestively as he chuckled. “You will be the first one dealt with. If she is good, Anya will not have to suffer, as you will. She may even tell me where my friend is.”

With a gesture, the branches began to tug down Erin’s pants and tear the shirt from her restrained body. She struggled, trying to get free with little success. Her mind raced, grasping for any way to get out of this violation. She was trapped completely. Nothing seemed to come to mind as she heard the fabric of her pants tear. Left in only her panties and bra, she had little options. Something drifted across her thoughts and she began to chant in Chinese. “Yielding, like ice about to melt. Yield and overcome.”

Her more supple body began to give way to the advances of the branches. They were unable to gain any ground on Erin’s underwear; her body seemed to give way like water. She writhed and moved against their attempts. The man with the talisman growled deeply and stalked towards her angrily.

Anya took the time from the distraction to finish the shape of the spell that she had been forming. She let it loose and began to feel the edges of the forest begin to return too normal. Anya hoped that it would work fast enough.

The man had picked up Erin’s sword and thrust it at her belly. Erin’s chant changed when he picked up her sword. If she could get him angry enough he might not notice Anya’s spell at work. “She will not be wounded in battle. Tigers no place to use their claws and weapons no place to pierce.”

Erin writhed sinuously as the man thrust at her, narrowly missing her, occasionally nicking her stomach so that blood began to trickle out and stain her panties. She kept chanting and moving and the man began to shriek in frustration. He began to thrust the talisman at her with even less success. He screeched and had the trees begin to pull her tighter.

But Anya’s spell had finally reached them. The trees were released from the grip of the talisman and the branches dropped the two girls. Anya tore her dagger free, ready to stab him if he would not stop attacking Erin.

Erin however rolled to her feet and threw the man by his outstretched arm. As he tumbled against a tree, she pulled two prayer sheets from her purse and hit both him and the talisman with them. The air was rent with a terrible sound and the air filled with burning brimstone. A horrid cracking sound snapped and the man’s body began to convulse. Erin dove onto him and struggled to keep him from breaking his body. “Anya!! Help!”

The two women rolled around on top of him as the convulsions contorted his body. Finally they trembled to a stop and his body hung limp. Anya checked his pulse and found a faint, thready one. “He is still alive, but barely. He needs either a hospital or Grandmother.”

Erin crawled to her knees. “Your Grandmother. He is suffering from severe magic backlash. It had almost managed to take him over completely. He must have used it a lot since last night. We might be able to save him if we hurry.”

“Why should we? Look at all that he has done, that we know of.” Anya’s anger slashed out.

Erin used the tree to help her get to her feet. “Because he was the thrall of the demon. He is as much the victim as the others. It removed the blocks to his urges and gave him the power to make his darkest fantasies real. Surely, he can be redeemed, isn’t that what you and your Grandmother do after all?”

Anya nodded. “True. But I don’t have to like it. Are you okay?”

Erin grabbed her sword and resheathed it. It snapped home with a sound of finality. “I’ll be alright. Just drained and sore and... and bleeding?”

“He nicked you with your sword, several times. Let’s go.” After they gathered up all their things they picked up the man and half dragged him to the car. He was unceremoniously dumped into the back seat. Anya drove to the park quickly, using her magic to pass by several police cars unnoticed.

Erin swayed uneasily in her seat, trying to pull some more energy in. She had used a lot more of her own energy than she had expected. She placed her hands on her bleeding belly and began to stir the Chi within herself. It grew slowly and she felt something deeper stir and pour energy into her body. It began to mend the cuts and welts from where the trees had held her. This source was deeper and fuller than she was used to. A quiet, peaceful sensation spread warmly from her Tan Tien as she breathed her strength back in.

Anya pulled up to the side entrance to the office and the two of them managed to get him into the building. Grandmother raised an eyebrow at Erin’s state of undress and gestured towards the couch. They dumped his body heavily and the man moaned. “I take it this is the second one, girls?”

Anya nodded. “Erin broke the talisman and we stopped it from killing him. So, we brought him here. I figured you might want to do something about him.”

Grandmother looked him over. “I am not sure we can save him. He is almost dead. He might not survive the transformation of the showers. I am sorry.”

Erin felt the growth of the energy coil in her body. “I think I can help.”

Grandmother nodded and moved away from the man on the couch. Erin looked down at him. His skin had gone grayish and his breathing was labored. She could feel his Chi bleeding out of him from where the talisman had locked into his spirit. She slapped her hands to bring a rush of Chi to her palms and rubbed them to raise the focus of power to her hands. She placed them on his Tan Tien and exhaled, pushing energy into him. She guided it to the tear and worked at mending it, slowly helping him to reweave his energy back into himself. The wellspring of energy she had tapped seemed to have no intention of running dry. She filled him with enough energy to sustain him until his own energy returned. She stopped pushing and filled whatever empty spaces she had with the energy. She stepped away.

The man’s skin was back to a normal color, just a little pale. His breathing was less ragged and all marks of pain or discomfort had faded. He slept on as the three ladies looked at him. A knock at the door broke the moment.

The three each looked at each other with some confusion on their faces. Anya walked over and hit the intercom button. “I am sorry but the park is closed right now. We will be open in the morning.”

A very cultured man’s voice spoke with even tones and a faint accent. “I am here to see my student, Eric Summers. My name is Shinju Kwai.”

Erin’s eyes widened in a slight panic as he spluttered, “Master Shinju here?”

Anya opened the door as Erin wrapped a towel about herself hurriedly. A late middle-aged Asian man, in a suit entered the room and bowed politely to them. “Forgive my intrusion. Eric, you look good. The towel goes with your eyes. You have done well on your Walkabout. When I sensed that the wellspring of the Tao awakened in you I came to let you know your Walkabout is over.”

Erin blinked. “I’m done? Wellspring of Tao? What?”

Grandmother and Anya moved back as the Asian gentleman glided smoothly over to Erin. With one hand, he reached out and placed his hand over Erin’s belly, over the Tan Tien. “This sensation you feel now. You have connected to the Tao and it has become a part of you in a way it had not been before. Thus, you are done with your training. The Tao is your teacher now.”

The smile grew slowly across Erin’s face as understanding dawned on her, starting in her green eyes. She bowed deeply to him. “Thank you Master.”

“There is no need to thank me. Fighting a demon and saving the host gave you the impetus to tap into the Tao. It has been achieved by your work not mine. You can now choose to do, as you will. You can let me know what you are going to do when you return to the temple. Good night ladies.” With that, he bowed and left. The door closed softly.

Erin stood there stunned. Grandmother guided her to a chair and sat her down. Anya picked up the man from the couch and headed towards the showers with a nod from Grandmother. She looked at the boy wearing the girl’s form and appraised him. “So, Eric, what do you intend to do now?”

Erin shook her head and blinked back to the here and now. “Uh, I don’t actually know. Can I take the last few days of my holiday to think about things?”

Grandmother nodded and smiled. “Of course. I think you have earned it. I may even let Anya have a break as well. I hope you can find the answers you want.”

* * * * * * * * * *

Erin rocked lazily in the hammock, sipping her iced tea. Now that the demonic talisman was gone, the two responsible dealt with and all the victims helped she finally had the time to sort out her answer to what she was going to do. The Walkabout had given her a lot more insight into people and the way they worked. She tried to turn that knowledge to herself.

She felt right and complete in this form. Her meditations and energy exercises only confirmed that idea. She felt more herself than she had before and it was a difficult fact to get used to. But the Tao spoke of following the flow of life, wherever it led. While Eric never had any urges to be like this, the transformation had given her some sense of wholeness that she had never felt before. She was not quite sure what to make of that. She felt more complete now than before.

Erin rested her right hand on her Tan Tien and felt the pulse and current of the energy flow. She was tied to the Tao now. She had opened herself to the current and as long as she didn’t fight the flow, she would continue to be that way. Would changing be fighting the flow?

She rocked in the hammock slightly and watched the few clouds through the trees. The slight breeze felt good one her smooth skin. The suit was almost dry from her swim earlier. With a sigh, Erin took another sip of iced tea. The cool, slightly lemony flavor soothed her throat. It wouldn’t be a bad life as a woman. Lots of people seemed to manage it. It would just be different. She felt that she could handle different.

She finished her ice tea and lay in the hammock, swaying slowly. She would stay like this. All she had to do was tell Grandmother and it could be done. She headed for the office. Hopefully this wouldn’t take long, she was getting hungry.

Grandmother seemed to be waiting for her when she reached the office. “Are you sure this is what you want Erin. It is a one-way trip. This sort of magic is not easy to change once set into place.”

“I don’t have anyone who would miss me. My parents died when I was fifteen and I have been living with Master Shinju since then. No girlfriend. Few friends outside of everyone here and Michelle in Hong Kong. No difficulties in my life that would require untangling. So yes, I am sure.”

The old woman thought about things for a while. “Alright. Go out front and pay Anya. I will have your ticket waiting.”

Erin bowed respectfully and headed for the changing rooms. She got out her money and headed for the entrance. There was a short line waiting to get in, including a number of guys. Some of them looked sure of themselves, others greeted Anya warmly. Apparently, coming to the park to transform was a common thing.

Erin finally made it up to the window. Anya smiled warmly, her eyes wet with happy tears. “One lifetime pass please Anya.”

She pushed the money across the counter. Anya held the ticket for a moment and handed it to her. “There you go Erin. I hope you enjoy it.”

The shower was warm and the pink mist swirled up as she relaxed into the pulse of the water. She could feel the magic shift things in her energy pattern a little finer, a little more in alignment with who she was now. The energy spun around her and flared into the world beyond the park making the necessary changes everywhere. As the energy of the spell drifted off, she turned off the water, letting droplets fall from her body. She had chosen her life.

She toweled off and went to her things. Lunch would help about now. Maybe tonight she would just stay in and rest. The last few days had been rather hectic.

* * * * * * * * * *

Anya had decided to stay in as well. The two of them were in their nightgowns cuddled against each other more for comfort than for anything else. They had a movie on and they were only mostly paying attention to it. The mugs of tea they both sipped on were soothing to their spirits.

The phone rang. Erin started. She had not been around a phone in a while. Anya got up and answered it. After a short pause Anya looked at her, “Here Erin, it’s for you.”

With a look of puzzlement on her face, she took the phone. “Hello?”

“Sweetie? It’s Mom. Mister Shinju told us you would be at this number. He said you had finished your hike. How are you?” The voice was painfully familiar.

“Mom?” her voice started to break with recognition.

“Yes honey. What?”

“It’s really you?” Erin’s voice was soft and child like.

“Of course it is. Your Dad and I are so proud of you. Your teacher said you passed this last part of the course with flying colors. We can’t wait for you to come home. The last three months have been so quiet without you. There is a ticket waiting for you.”

“I can’t wait to come home mommy. I missed you so much.” Erin started to cry, her voice catching. “I missed you both.”

“I know sweetie. But you’ll be home soon and we can have a party to celebrate. See you soon.”

“See you soon.” Erin’s tears blurred her vision as she hung up the phone. She turned to Anya, who also had tears in her eyes. She was smiling broadly at her new friend. “It was the least we could do Erin.”

“How? I thought it wasn’t possible to bring people back from the dead.”

“It isn’t. Grandmother worked the spell to shift your life from almost the beginning to give them back to you. They never died, but you still went and trained. You chose that over finishing High School. According to things, you now are a Doctor of Oriental Medicine. You just finished the last part of that, or at least that is the cover story. You have been apart from them, just not as completely as before.”

The two hugged fiercely. Erin’s tears soaked the shoulder of Anya’s nightgown. “Thank you. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.”

“What are friends for?”