In Virgo Veritas
copyright 2011 Faeriemage
"If I'd been able to rectify my predicament before, I wouldn't be in this mess now."

Jared Milton was not the best looking, fastest, smartest, strongest, or any other 'est' you could ascribe to a person. Neither was he the worst. He was…average. Not so much in appearance, since many would have considered him to be a bit above average, but in most everything else about him. His height matched perfectly with the average worldwide height for men. His weight fit perfectly in the center of acceptable weight. He'd never been pulled over for speeding, because he never drove more than the speed limit.

His room was painted white and had nothing on the walls. Clothing was in the laundry hamper his mom put there, but the rest of the room was cluttered. Not quite messy, and not quite clean. He never fought with his parents, but then again he never had reason to.

He smoked, once, and almost drank twice. He did not carry around a condom in his wallet, even though his father had given him one, since he never thought he'd have the opportunity to have sex. He never went to a school dance, not for lack of trying, but because he always seemed to ask the girl after she'd already said yes to another guy. After the fourth of fifth rejection of this sort, he even tried asking a girl to the Halloween dance for the next year just after the current on ended. She was a lesbian.

He got a B+ average in school, which was in the middle of the pack at his high school. He had one year left before he went to the local community college with his friends.

I know what you're probably thinking, but you'd be wrong. Being an outcast would have made him special, and that just isn't the case. He had a good group of friends, mostly like him. People who kept their heads down, weren't really popular, and weren't the targets of ridicule.

He went on a few dates, but none of them ever really seemed to go anywhere. He got a few hugs, and one or two swift pecks on the cheek.

All in all, Jared was that most elusive of all things in this world: Normal.

Well, normal in all but one regard.

You see, unlike his friends, Jared had somehow made it through seventeen years ten months and twenty days completely unsullied by the modern world.

He would sit in the lunchroom as people went on about things they saw on the Internet, or people they'd been with, and it would all just pass over his head. He actually still thought that when someone said that they'd slept with so-and-so, well, there was dreaming going on.

Melons were fruit to Jared. A Freudian slip would have to be some sort of undergarment, you know, worn with period dresses or something. Spankings were punishments given to children.

As usual, Jared drove himself to school that morning. He stopped on red. Slowed down, usually, on yellow, and drove on green. He waved to his neighbors and smiled at anyone who looked his way.

Everything was pleasant for him.

Until it wasn't.

"Jared, I'd like for you to take a left turn at the next light."

The person who climbed into his passenger seat as he was idling at an intersection was most decidedly not average looking. He had black hair and a rakish goatee. His eyes were a piercing blue that seemed to see into your soul with a glance. His clothing was rough, almost handmade looking, and a deep burgundy. An amulet hung around his neck on a silver chain.

"I'm not planning on being late to school today, so if you'd climb back out the way you came in, I need to turn right to get to school."

"Jared, going to school today would be a bad idea."

"And I'm supposed to believe someone who just got into my car at an intersection has my best interest in mind?"

"I don't really care whether you believe me or not."

"Ok. Please leave now."

Jared turned right and continued on to school. The gentleman had made no other threatening moves toward him, so Jared made no moves to comply. He left the man in his car, which he didn't lock for once. It seemed counter intuitive for the moment.

He went to school and nothing happened. His classes progressed as normal, and he made his way to the cafeteria for lunch. There again, nothing happened. He ate his food, drank his milk, and was heading toward his next class when he decided to take a quick stop off in the restroom.

There were a couple of students he didn't know standing around at the sinks, so Jared made his way to the furthest stall. He locked the door, missing the sound of the outer door being locked. After concluding his business we went out to wash his hands.

"Jared, we'd like for you to come with us."

These people were not as menacing as the other guy had been. They looked like students. They were good looking guys who seemed to be the sort of people that would be popular wherever they went.

"Where to?"

"We'd like to show you something we're preparing for your birthday."

Jared's birthday was on the 31^st of October, which was just over a month away. He'd never had anyone, other than his parents, remember when his birthday was, and this intrigued him.

"For my birthday? This isn't a joke is it?"

"No joke," one of them said, and Jared slumped down. The man standing behind him pocketed the syringe again.

"You sure took your time about it, Tom," the one closest to the door said.

"Well, he seemed about ready to come with us willingly, Andy."

"It doesn't matter, you two, this way is faster. You stay with the body while I run to the office to get someone to call an 'ambulance.'"

"Sure thing, Hans."

The one named Hans ran from the bathroom to the office, a look of panic on his face. "A student collapsed in the bathroom. I don't know what's wrong. You've got to do something."

The secretaries were shocked by the outburst, and it was actually a student waiting to see the principal who called 911. Hans was gone before anyone recovered enough to ask him who he was. He collected his two friends from the facilities and left the school.

Jared lay on the floor for twenty minutes or so before the EMTs arrived. They didn't check for breathing or pulse, just tru8ssed him up on the backboard and carted him out to their ambulance. They also didn't drive to the hospital.

They pulled off the road into a cornfield where they ditched the ambulance and moved Jared into a van. Then, to make sure that there would be no clues to who they were, they torched the ambulance.

Through it all, Jared slept. Hans rejoined them outside a cave and directed them to a small furnished room deep inside. It wasn't the sort of place you'd ever peg as a cave, at least not from the inside. They'd covered the walls with tapestries and the floors with rugs. Candles lit the expanses and added an intimacy to the entire scene that would otherwise have been absent.

Jared began to stir, but Hans only smiled.

"Should I jab him again?"

"Just tie him to the bed. He can be awake for the next part."

The bed was in the middle of the room, suspended from the ceiling by a chain made of rope. They had isolated it from everything around it to the best of their ability. In ages past they would have simply rested it on a column of air, but they were short on power now. Belief in their order was low, and willing sacrifices were rare. The stories had become muddled, making people misunderstand the term sacrifice. That and the fact that innocence was also rare in the modern world.

There were candles at each of the sixteen cardinal points of the compass. Each of them had been burning for exactly seventeen hours and forty minutes. The candles were normal, as their significance lay more in their use, than their composition.

They were unpigmented, however, and white as paraffin.

Sixteen hooded figures strode into the room and took places at each of the sixteen candles. Each bore an aromatic herb in his hand from jasmine to lavender to thyme to sage. They stood there, patiently, holding the herbs a foot above the flames. At the beginning of the eighteenth hour they simultaneously dropped their herbs into the candles' flames.

The light changed in the room, going from the yellow of the candles to the softest pink of a new dawn.

Jared's back arched. He made no sound as he was bathed in that light, and made no movement after that sudden arching of his back. The sixteen figures stepped past the ring of candles at this point, careful not to tough any of them, and pulled out knives made of silver and chased in gold.

Jared's eyes were clear and he opened his mouth to scream but no sound came out. The pink glow shone off the knives as the figures drew closer and closer. Each of the sixteen lay a hand upon Jared's body and he shuddered at their touch. His eyes grew wild as they drew back their knives and as they began to move he shut them tight.

They sound of ripping cloth was loud in the room and in an instant Jared was naked on that bed. Starting at the figure at the head of the bed, the figure to the north, they filed out of the room, leaving Jared in solitude.

He could still feel the light entering him in the almost pain that had caused his reaction before. He felt it in his throat and gut. The light slowly began to intensify, and the look of fear came back to Jared's eyes. He tried to move, to get away from that light, but it was no use. Even as the candles finally burned out, the light became more and more intense, and the frantically writhing Jared continued in his gyrations. His mouth began to move, but no sound came out.

Somebody, please. Save me, he mouthed over and over until his body gave up and he passed out.

The room was dark, and the sounds of movement could be heard.

"Careful. You've been out for a couple of days."

There was a croaking sound from the darkness and a chuckle.

"We couldn't hook you up to an IV, so you're a bit dehydrated. Come, get a drink. Let me get a light for you."

A light flared in the darkness. Just a single candle, but after the absolute pitch black of before, it was enough to see by. Tom carefully helped Jared to drink from a metal cup, which he spat out.

"Are you trying to poison me?"

"We'd never do that, Jared."

"That was foul, whatever it was."

"It was the sixteenth centuries answer to Gatorade. I know it tastes nasty, but it's about the only thing we're sure won't affect the ceremony."

"What ceremony?"

"You'll see. Don't you worry your pretty little head over it."

Tom held the cup again to Jared's lips, and he drank the rest of it. His thirst outweighed the foul taste. Tom looked appraisingly at Jared's body after the boy slumped back down unconscious. There were definitely the buds for breasts on the boys chest, and a slight widening of the hips.

"Tom, has he drunk it then?"

"Yes, Hans. I'm still amazed that this even works."

"It's magic, Tom. Of course it works."

"Hans, until three years ago I didn't believe in magic."

Hans laughed and guided the other man out of the room. They left the candle to burn out on it's own. Jared's eyes opened as soon as they were gone. He tried to get out of bed, to run away from these madmen, but his body collapsed into sleep before he'd gotten more than halfway across the room.

The candle was already burning when Jared's eyes opened again. He was again in the bed, covered from the waist down by a blanket. Tom offered the glass again, and Jared drank. He was so thirsty that any thought of holding out for an untainted glass were pushed aside. He looked down at himself and screamed.

"What are you doing to me?"

The barest bulge of breasts had begun to form. His ribs shown plainly on his chest, where the new grown breasts did not cover, and his waist seemed to have shrunken in relation his wider hips. He did not have a truly feminine form, but it was moving in that direction. His voice shocked him as well. It was slightly higher pitched than he remembered it.

"Relax, Jared. You will be perfectly healthy when we are done here."

"Let me out of here you freak. Let me…out…of…"

Jared collapsed on the bed, and began to softly snore.

"Got the dose right this time, I see," Hans said from the doorway.

"Yes, Hans, I did. Didn't want a repeat of last time. She could have hurt herself."

"Not a she yet."

"Well, not a 'he' anymore either. His penis disappeared a couple of days ago."

"Is that why you covered him up."

"Yes. The sight makes me a bit uncomfortable."

Hans laughed, not unkindly, and patted Tom on the back as they left, "You are a better man than me, Tom. I would have looked and gotten off on it."

Tom colored, but it was hardly noticeable in the candlelight.

The sound of fighting woke Jared, and the thirst was again overpowering. The man from the car burst into the room took one look at Jared's naked body and swore.

"We're too late. Sorry about this, Jared, but I told you that trusting me was the best option."

"You knew about this?" Jared asked in a voice that was higher than before, but not quite feminine.

"Yes, but I figured they would try it closer to your birthday."

"What's so special about my birthday?"

"You turn eighteen. Here, put this on. I figured you would still be…well…your old size."

Jared pulled on the jeans and tee shirt with difficulty. They were the right lengths, but the chest and butt were too tight. The man turned away, consciously not looking at Jared.

"Am I that hideous?"

"No, quite the opposite."

"Um, I thought you said these were in my size. I can't get the pants to zip."

The man turned toward Jared, caught a glimpse of hair peaking out of the opening, and immediately reddened and turned away.

"Damn. Next time I remember underwear."

Jared looked down and colored. Just because he was innocent didn't mean that he was completely oblivious.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to…well…this is kind of weird."

"We don't have much time. Hurry."

Jared ran after the mysterious figure as he made his way out of the cave. There was a sports car outside the entrance, and Jared ran over to it.

"If you can, crouch down on the floor."

Jared climbed into the passenger seat and kept as low as he could while the man whipped the car around d and drove like a maniac. Bursts of light exploded silently all around them, and Jared would have been worried about his hearing had not the sound of the engine confirmed that at least that was still working.

A feeling, both familiar and different, began to form in the pit of Jared's stomach. "I think I need to pee."

"Hold it."

"I'm trying."

"Cross your legs, then."

Jared did as he was told, sure that it wouldn't do anything for him. The pressure didn't go away, but it felt a little less insistent. He moved onto the seat to make it a little more comfortable.

A figure zipped by inches from his head.

"I told you to keep down."

"Yeah, I needed to get up."

There were motorcycles around them zooming in and out of traffic. Every once in a while, one of them would gesture toward the car and another of the silent explosions would light up the night.

"Well, since you're up, buckle in, and hold on tight."

The car sped up, leaving the motorcycles behind. Jared looked at the driver in amazement. He seemed to be concentrating fully on the road and the other drivers. They moved in and out of traffic with an ease that belied the speed they were traveling. Jared glanced at the odometer and let out a little shriek.

"Are you crazy? We can't be going 200 miles per hour on the freeway."

"I think you meant 'shouldn't' and you would be right except for the people following us."

"Who are they, anyway?"

"Shut up, please. Focusing on not getting us killed," he said as he pulled only the shoulder of the road, missing the semi truck that was in their former lane by mere inches.

Jared just sat there, wide eyed, and held into the seat for dear life.

Somewhere in the middle of the mixture of adrenaline crash and lack of proper food for too many days took their toll and Jared fell asleep. As soon as his conscious control left, his legs relaxed.

"Damn it," the driver said. The smell was almost worse. He swore again. The car would have to be ditched, and the clothing would have to be burned.

He pulled out a cell phone and made a call.

"They put a phero-tracker in her water apparently. Yes, I said her. They already started the process, probably the day they took her. Likely be fully complete in only another couple of hours. No, she's just skin and bones, so they were likely waiting to feed her until it was all over."

He told the person where they were and they agreed upon a meeting place just off the freeway.

He opened the windows and pulled off the freeway at the next off ramp. The car would be used to lure the dogs away and into the wrong direction.

The cold air was enough to bring Jared back to her senses.

"What's happening. Oh, no. Did I…"

"Yes, you wet the bed. Looks like we need to change your clothing and the car."

Jared blushed and looked out the other window. "What's happening to me?"

"I'll explain it all when we get to the hotel for the night. Over dinner."

Jared's stomach growled and she blushed again.

"Sounds like you could use a good meal," the driver said as he laughed.

"What's your name?"

"Samuel."

"Nice to meet you Sam."

"No, It's Samuel."

"Oh." Jared was a silent for a moment or two, as if trying to find something to say.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

They pulled over into an abandoned parking lot and waited for a man in a BMW to drive up.

"Samuel, glad to see you in one piece. Is this her?"

"Jared, Michael. Michael, Jared."

Michael coughed at the name.

"You're going to need a new name now, you realize?"

"Huh?"

"Did you bring the clothes?" Samuel asked, trying to change the subject.

"Sure. A pair of workout clothes or a dress is all I could get on this short notice."

"But…these are girls clothing," Jared protested. The light summer dress almost needed no explanation. The top of the workout attire was hot pink in a spaghetti strap. The bottom looked like most pants she'd seen, but there was something off about the cut that she couldn't quite put her finger on.

"Well, you can't stay in your current clothing."

"Only the pants are wet. Why not let me keep the tee shirt. I'd feel weird in that top."

"Sorry. Need to change both. Nature of the beast." With that the two men turned around and went a short way away to allow Jared to change.

"She doesn't know?"

"She never thought to look, I think. They found a real naive one this year. A true innocent. And her birthday is the day before."

"Halloween? You're kidding."

"Nope. I…"

He was about to say more, but Jared walked up. Samuel began to give her a quick once over, and then focused his eyes on her face. It was cold out there and she wasn't wearing a bra.

"Michael, get in touch with some of the other guys and get me some undergarments."

"What size?" he asked, looking at the offending area. Leering really. Jared was completely oblivious of the attention.

"Well, you're the one measuring her with your eyes, you figure it out."

Samuel lead her over to the beemer and helped her into the passenger seat. The change of clothing would have to do until they were able to get her into a shower. He didn't have the heart to tell her that she'd have to wear the dress after that. It was obvious that she preferred the more masculine, if only in concept, clothing.

They pulled into the underground parking lot of one of the hotels downstairs and parked the car. Samuel guided them to the elevator and they got in. Jared was amazed at the opulence of what he'd seen already.

It was only then that he noticed that the button for the top floor had been pressed.

"The penthouse? Who are you guys?"

"Would you accept, 'No one to be trifled with'?"

Jared snorted, which came out a lot more feminine than it would have even a couple of hours ago. The rate of change, as was expected, was accelerating. Her voice had settled into an almost sensual tone which sent shivers down Samuel's spine. Her face had shifted subtly and softened.

Her hands would always be a bit large, but that was the problem with the spell. It could enhance bone structure, but not diminish it in any way. Like her hips, widened again since he'd first retrieved her from the cave.

Her body had eaten itself to fuel the changes, and she was just shy of skin and bones.

She began to examine herself in the mirrored surface of the elevator doors. Her hand rubbed over her jaw and played with her hair a bit.

"How long did they have me there? They must have shaved my face, but I can't even feel any stubble there. And my hair…I've never been able to get it to grow much past my ears."

Her hair cascaded down to the small of her back. It was a wonder that she hadn't noticed already, as it would have had to get caught in her clothing already.

She was, in a word, beautiful. A little skinny for Samuel's tastes, but something like that was easily remedied.

He'd been so lost in thought that he never answered her question.

"You were there just over two weeks. That means we just have to keep you safe for another three weeks."

"What happens in three weeks?"

"Halloween. If we can get through that night then you'll be fine."

"What happens on Halloween?"

"A discussion for another time. We're here."

The door opened on a short private hallway that brought them to the door to their suite. Her house had been smaller than the penthouse they now entered. It took up the entire top floor of the hotel, wrapping around the centrally placed elevator. There was a grand piano off to one side of the entrance, which Jared wondered at. It wouldn't have fit in the elevator or through the door to the suite.

"This place is amazing."

"Go, get showered. Leave your clothing outside the door so I can take care of it."

"What do you mean?"

"It's been tainted. They'll be able to track us by the smell of your urine."

At the mention of urine, Jared realized that she needed to use the facilities again. She quickly stripped and walked across the room to the bathroom. Samuel colored and looked away.

As soon as the door to the bathroom was closed, he shook his head and swore. There was a smile on his face. "That woman would tempt the resolve of a saint, and I'm no saint."

As soon as she was in the bathroom, Jared reached for her penis only to be met with nothing. She frantically searched for just a moment before realizing the truth.

She screamed.

Samuel burst through the door, his gun at the ready. He colored immediately upon seeing her touch herself. He turned around.

"Damn it, Jared. What is it?"

"My penis is gone."

"Yes, they turned you into a girl."

Jared's eyes rolled back up into her head and she began to collapse. Samuel caught her and got her into the shower before her bladder could release again. The smell was less than the previous time, but still obviously there. Trying not to spend too much time eyeing her body, he sprayed her down with the shower head, and then dried her off.

He carried her to the bed and got her between the covers. Then, he went to take a shower of his own. This one would be ice cold.

He'd never realized it before, but there was something compelling about absolute innocence in an adult. Almost adult, he amended.

Jared had no clue how sexy she was.

Samuel went to the other side of the suite and lay down on his own bed. He was tormented by the knowledge that she was still a minor, and more so by the fact that she was so absolutely innocent to the ways of the world.

He took some cleansing breaths and fell asleep.

He awoke to another scream. He was out of bed and across the suite before his brain even registered what he was doing.

Jared was sitting up in bed and screaming at something behind him. He turned and saw a full length mirror, realizing that she was probably truly looking at herself for the first time since the transformation.

"I'm…I'm…that's…"

"Yes, you're a girl now, Jared."

Jared began laughing hysterically. "Jared's a boy's name. Not a boy any longer."

"Take a deep breath and calm yourself."

Jared took a deep breath, and her eyes widened. She did it again. Samuel smiled, thinking he knew exactly the thoughts that were running through the young girl's mind.

"That's really me, isn't it? I have…breasts."

Jared moved her hand up to her chest, watching her reflection do the same. She pinched, hard, and winced in pain.

"Yep, their mine. How do women handle this weight all the time."

"Usually they wear bras."

Jared colored at the mention of the forbidden undergarment. Samuel looked puzzled for a moment or two and then left the girl examining herself in the mirror. A couple of minutes later, a voice called from the room.

"Where's the other clothing?"

"I had to burn it."

"You what?"

"I burned it. The smell had gotten into them as well, and I had to get rid of it the only way I had available. For some reason it sticks to cloth a lot better than skin."

"But…but…A dress?"

"Jared, look in that mirror and tell me what you see?"

"A girl, but…"

"And do girls wear dresses?"

"Sure, but…"

"Then put on the dress. Your nakedness really bothers me."

A still blushing Jared emerged from the room a few moments later. The dress seemed to fit her new form perfectly and it accentuated the curves she had. "So, what do you think? Does this make my butt look big?"

Samuel's mouth dropped open, and Jared began to giggle.

"That wasn't funny."

"I thought it was."

"You know what a guy does when a girl asks him that question? He looks at her butt."

Jared colored a pretty shade of crimson at this and turned her butt away from the speaker. Samuel laughed at her, and after a moment or two she joined in.

"So, how long does this thing last? This hallucination or whatever it is."

"What hallucination?"

"Um, well," Jared gestured toward her body, and all thought of humor left Samuel.

"Jared, this isn't a hallucination or a dream. You are really a girl."

The color drained from her face, and she began to fall forward. Samuel stepped forward and caught her again. He eased her to the ground, just as her eyes fluttered open. She was staring at his mouth, and so he hurried and backed up.

"What happened to me?"

She began to rise, but Samuel motioned for her to stay where she was.

"Stay there for a bit. I ordered us some room service while you were out before. It should be here soon."

Jared leaned against the couch and looked over at her benefactor. "What happened?"

"Well, the short answer is there was a shortage of appropriately aged female virgins, so they decided to make their own."

"Wait, so some group of lunatics did some surgery or other on me in order to kill me for a pagan ritual?"

"No, nothing so crass. They used magic."

"Oh, is that all? Magic? Do I look like a moron to you. Everyone knows…" Jared stopped talking and looked on in wonder as Samuel began to levitate above the floor.

"What does everyone know?"

Jared began backing toward the door. "Just stay away from me."

"Wait, Jared…"

"You could be with them. You probably are. How could I have been so stupid as to trust someone like you. It's all obvious now."

"Jared…"

"You 'saved' me so that I would stay with you willingly for some reason, then when I'm not looking BAM you get me from behind with a knife."

"Jared, be reasonable. If I'd wanted to kill you, you'd be dead already."

"That's what you want me to think, but you already told me that Halloween is the time that you would kill me. I may be blonde, but I'm not stupid."

Samuel chuckled.

"What's so funny?"

"You're not blond?"

"But, I used to be. What color…" She pulled some of her now auburn locks over her shoulder to look at them.

"Wait. Just a few minutes ago I know for sure that my hair was blonde."

"Final stages of the spell. It's an old Celtic one, so it tends to change hair and eye color at the end to fit the perfect color imagined by the spell's creators."

"But red?"

"You don't look bad, you know."

"I'm a girl, Samuel. I look horrible."

The doorbell rang and Samuel went over and answered it. He talked with someone out of Jared's line of sight and then pushed a cart over to where she was sitting. "I'm not sure what you wanted, so I have a tray full of food here for you to start on."

She started on the fruit and moved onto a hamburger and then a salad. It was only after he brought over the second cart that she began to realize just how much she'd eaten.

"Um…"

"Don't worry about it. Those are spell calories. Your body uses them up almost before they even reach your stomach."

"Now there's a diet for you."

"Yeah, you just need to get turned into a girl for it to work."

Jared snorted her cute little snort at this and then dug into the second cart. She was most of the way done with that one before she started to feel full. Then it was only moments before she stopped eating completely. She climbed up on the couch and leaned back, spreading her legs and lounging in the deep cushions.

Samuel reddened and looked away.

"You realize that you're still not wearing any underwear?"

"What does that…oh." Her dress had ridden up to her navel with a combination of how she was sitting and scooting around on the couch to find a comfortable position. She sat up, pulled down her dress, and put her knees together, not necessarily in that order, or really any order in particular.

"Sorry, Sammy."

"Samuel."

"Why so formal?"

"Because lessening my name lessens me. Names have power."

"Really, so if I got everyone to start calling you S, then you'd basically loose all your power?"

"Something like that," he said with a smile.

Something seemed to occur to her as he smiled, "how come everyone doesn't know about this magic stuff."

"Well, like many things this world, like singing, it takes an aptitude to do it well, and a lot of training to get it right."

"So could I learn it?"

"I doubt it."

"Why not?"

"Cause you're a girl."

"That's very chauvinist of you. Besides, I wasn't born a girl."

"Doesn't matter to the magic. Well, I should say my magic. You'd have to find yourself a witch or a sorceress. I'm just an average run of the mill wizard."

"So…chances are it would be a witch who could change me back?"

"There is no changing back, Jared. Not that I've ever heard of."

"Yes, but you're only a wizard."

Samuel shook his head sadly. "You don't think you're the first one we've saved, do you?"

The sadness in Samuel's voice got to Jared and she began to cry. Samuel sat down beside her and took her in his arms, and she let loose all of the anguish that she felt at losing her identity. She sobbed into his chest, a lost soul with only this small piece of driftwood to cling onto.

Eventually she cried herself out and fell asleep again. Samuel carried her to the bed and again put her between the covers.

His phone rang, so he closed the door behind him so that he could talk freely.

"No, don't worry about it. Everything is working according to plan. We just have a few more things to take care of and then we can bring this all to a close."

Jared's eyes got wide as she listened from the doorway. She'd fallen asleep, but the movement woke her when he put her in bed. All of her fears seemed to be coming true. Silently she made her way back to the bed and lay down, waiting for the lights to go out. Then, she slowly counted to one hundred before she got up and began to move around the living area. She quickly found the keys to the car, and was out the door and into the elevator.

The entire ride to the basement she kept expecting the doors to open and men to rush in on her. Men in hoods who would take her somewhere and kill her.

She fumbled the keys into the ignition and finally, after a few false starts, got the car driving. She was driving too fast for the conditions, just trying to get her bearings, to find her way home. Her parents would know what to do, like they always did.

Her stomach sank through the souls of her feet when the red and blue flashing lights began.

"No no no no. This can't be happening. Can't This has to be a nightmare."

She considered trying to outrun the officer, but thought better of it and pulled over.

"License and registration."

"I don't have it on me. They kidnapped me and I'm only now getting away. You've got to help me officer."

"Who are you, miss?"

"Jared Milton."

The last few hours had been a blur as the officer put her in the back of his squad car and took her down to the precinct. They took her finger prints and put her into a holding cell with other women awaiting whatever they wait for on a Friday evening. Someone to bring bail. Someone to let them know they care. Someone to take them to the county lockup for the evening. One by one the other women were moved out of the cell until only Jared remained.

"What's the holdup, Steve?"

"According to her prints, She is Jared Milton."

"You're kidding, right? There's got to be some mistake. Or maybe she's one of those tranny prostitutes or something."

"According to the EMT we had in here, there's no sign of surgery."

"Some of these surgeons are good. Give me a couple of minutes with her and I'll know for sure."

"That's sick, Scolletti."

"Not like you never thought the same thing, Burns."

"Never. I really am a happy married man, Scolletti. And make sure the captain never hears you say that."

"Hears him say what, Burns?"

Captain Patty Blake did not like to hear her detectives keeping secrets from her. Especially this late on a Friday night. She could feel the tension mounting in the office even though the full moon, and Halloween, were still two weeks away. Alone either one was a terrible night to be a cop. Together? The only thing worse would be if the two were joined by a Friday the thirteenth. Luckily that was impossible.

"Well, um, you see…"

"I can answer for myself, Burns. I suggested that he let me in the cell with Jared and I'd verify his story fast enough."

"Go home, Scolletti."

"What?"

"This will be the last time I tell you."

"But captain, I was just joking."

"The next time you joke about raping anyone, let alone someone in custody, I'll have your badge."

Scolletti stormed out of the squad room leaving Burns and Blake alone. It's not that they were the only ones on duty, just that they were the only ones in the building at that moment.

"So, what do you make of this all, Burns?"

"He…she…has to be lying. Right? I mean she has to have gone through surgery of some sort. Really good surgery, sure, but surgery. Then she had a psychotic break and is convinced that she never wanted any of this. We should just send her over to Willshire and call it a day."

"But what about the fact that there is a missing persons report on Jared Milton, listing him as a boy. The picture is similar, but in no way the same, as the person in that cell."

"You think we should actually talk to the parents then?"

Captain Blake sat there for a moment, thinking, and then nodded once. "Let's call Jared's parents and get them down here. They might be able to tell us what's going on. Tell them we've found a lead on their son, and would like to get some more information from them."

"Maybe this is a twin thing? Right? I mean, she could be a twin that has convinced herself that she is Jared?"

"A twin there's no record of?"

They both sat there silently for a couple of moments and then Captain Blake got up and went back to her office. Burns called the parents and explained the situation, at least as much of it as he wanted to share over the phone, and they said they'd be right over.

When he was done, he walked over to the window and stood staring out into the darkness. The steady tick of the electric clock on the wall was his only company at that moment, and for some reason it didn't comfort him.

Tick, tick, tick. Over and over. On and on. The seconds continued to leak out of the world. Each one left a hole that could never be filled. Each one took a little more of his life away.

He pulled out his cell phone and dialed his wife.

"Hey, Lacey."

"Billy?"

"Yeah, just thought I'd give you a call and see how you're doing."

"Fine. Well, pregnant, but fine otherwise."

"You're the one who wanted to be pregnant, dearest."

"You're the one who made me this way. I blame it all on you."

"From what I recall…"

"Oh, shut up."

Burns chuckled, and his wife gave a little giggle.

"You going to be home soon? I'd really love one of your massages about now."

"And you want me to rub your feet as well, I assume."

"That would be heavenly."

"Love you."

"Love you too."

Burns turned toward the figures who were walking into the squad room.

"Can I help you?"

Light exploded all around him, silently tearing him into pieces and splashing his blood over the desks surrounding him. Captain Blake had a moment more to prepare and began returning fire. She took down two of the figures before she too became nothing more than color in her office.

Hans stood there surveying the damage.

"When we get the girl back, and complete this ritual, we won't need to hide any more. We will have the power we need to again take our place as the rulers of this pitiful world."

He walked regally into the holding area and found Jared cowering in a corner.

"The dress suits you, my dear. If I didn't need to wait until Halloween, I'd take you here and now."

"Aren't you going to kill me?"

"Kill you? Who told you that? No, we're just going to have sex with you."

"Huh?"

"You kill an innocent, and their innocence calls at you from the dust. Some beings could live with that. Truly evil beings they were. Your kind called them dragons. Us, we derive our power from the destruction of innocence."

The import of their words slowly sank into Jared, and the blood drained from her face. She began to get a bit wobbly in the knees as Hans began to laugh. At a touch the lock on the cell melted and he gestured the two who'd come with him through the opening.

Just as they got to her, Jared sank to the floor, avoiding their grasping hands. They began to bend down toward her, but she'd been faking this time. She reached out and grabbed a handful of each of the men's pants and twisted.

They screamed out in pain and doubled over on the floor. She wiped her hands on her dress with a look of disgust on her face.

She stood and walked over to Hans and slugged him.

He began to laugh at her.

"You stupid girl. Don't you realize that you don't have the strength for that? Your body is still short on food, and used up most of your muscle mass in the change. It's amazing that you can walk, let alone try to fight me."

He grabbed her by the arm and dragged her out into the squad room. He left the other two writhing on the ground. It was their own fault she tricked them after all.

Hans' head exploded the moment that they entered the room. The bang of the gun seemed to echo in the room, dazing Jared. Brain and blood peppered her face and hair, and was soaking into her clothing. She took one look down at herself and began to scream.

Three more shots rang out, and three more people dropped to the ground.

"Are you ok, miss?"

Jared looked at Scolletti without any recognition. It would be better to say she was just staring in his direction. Her expression was slack. She began to scream again.

Scolletti slapped her.

"Miss, we need to get out of here. I've called in backup, as I don't know who else is in the building, but we need to get somewhere safe."

He guided her out of the squad room and out to the lot. He opened the passenger side door of his squat car, and then got in himself on the other side. When they started moving again, Jared stopped screaming, but she still wasn't exactly there. She had a vacant expression, and her eyes simply didn't meet anything in her surroundings. A couple of other patrol cars, and a SWAT van arrived as they sat there, and Scolletti left to join the rest of the police.

While she was sitting there alone, a car drove up. Her parents car. She got out and ran over to them as they began to get out and looked around them bewildered.

"Mom? Dad?"

They looked at her without any comprehension. "Who are you?"

"It's me, Jared."

"You're not our son, young lady," her Dad said.

"You have to believe me. I'm Jared."

Her mom looked at her closely, but there was no recognition in her eyes. The bad light, and the blood, and other things, still on Jared's face, seemed to be making any of the slight similarities hard for either of them to see.

Jared began to frantically relate her tale, needed her parents to believe her. When she was done they both looked at her in disgust.

"Our son has been gone for three weeks, and you have the gall to tell us that you're him? You're probably just looking for money or a handout or something. Get away from us. We never want to see you again."

Jared sank to the ground and began to sob. Her parents got back into their car and drove away. She didn't resist when she was lifted up into the back of an ambulance and strapped down.

Nothing mattered any more. She'd thought that she would be able to just go back to her life after this, maybe just as a girl, but that was shattered by her parent's statements. They would never want her. They wanted Jared back.

"Well, they're not getting Jared back. Jared is dead. There's only me left." She began to giggle, and then laugh. She wanted to cry, but all she did was laugh.

The edifice that was Willshire Mental Hospital loomed above the ambulance and its occupants. They wheeled the stretcher out of the back and into the entrance.

Samuel met them as they entered.

"She was spouting some nonsense about being changed into a girl, and then collapsed into hysterical laughter. She said something about Jared, a missing boy, being dead. We tried to get her to speak about that, but she's completely unresponsive."

"Don't worry about it. I'll take care of her."

The girl looked up and saw the face of Samuel.

"Don't leave me here! He's one of the people who wants to rape me on Halloween. You have to let me out of here."

Samuel motioned to one of the orderlies and he injected a sedative into her arm. She relaxed against her restraints and fell unconscious.

"We've got it from here. Thanks for your help."

"No problem, Doctor Jensen."

Samuel went upstairs to the top of the building, and to a door that seemed to lead out into open air. The window beside it suggested so anyway.

He pulled an ornate key out of his pocket and unlocked the door. Through the doorway wasn't the outside of the building, but a long low room with thick wooden timbers overhead.

"Welcome, Samuel. So, you have Jared back again?"

"I'm not sure she is Jared any more. Sure, she still has the same memories, but she said in the ambulance that Jared was dead, Sir"

The person at the head of the table stroked his long white beard, thinking about the ramifications of all of this, "that's not good. The only hope we had of keeping her from willingly going to them on Halloween was that she still insisted on being Jared."

"Someone called her parents. She was rejected by them."

"Hmm. That might be the key, Samuel. Can you get them in here?"

"I'm sure that I can."

"Well, let's run some tests, then, and get them to realize that this is their son."

"Right away, Michael."

"That really is our son?"

Samuel showed them the sheet with the test on it, "the DNA tells us that he…she…is your son."

"How, how did this happen."

Samuel lied, of course, as he'd been given permission. "We don’t really know. We're thinking surgery of some sort, but she's already recovered. No soreness or sutures. Nothing to indicate how they did it. An MRI shows that she even has a uterus and ovaries, although no one knows if they are functional."

"I need to see her."

"It might not be a good idea…"

Jared's mom looked at Samuel, ferocity gleamed in her eyes, "I will see my son, no matter what he currently looks like."

Samuel smiled at her back, and then hurriedly opened the door.

"Jared?"

"Jared doesn't live here anymore. Just me. I don't know who I am, but I'm not Jared. Jared is dead. They killed Jared and put me where he used to be."

"Honey, we know you're ours. I'm sorry. We didn't know."

The girl looked at her mother with a sad expression on her face.

"Jared's dead, mom. I can't ever be Jared anymore."

"Then be Angela."

"Angela?"

"Yes, Angela. I think you are as beautiful as a little angel, and that is the only name that could really fit you."

"But I need to be a devil. They want to take me and rape me momma. They want to take away my purity. If I give it away to someone else, then I'll be safe. If someone else…"

"Baby, no one will hurt you. You're safe now."

"It's just sex, momma. It can't hurt. Then I won't be a virgin anymore and they won't want to sacrifice me. If I'd been able to rectify my predicament before, I wouldn't be in this mess now."

"You're…and Jared…never?"

"No, mom. I never had sex." Angela colored upon saying the word. She seemed to be coming back to herself, and the wild light in her eyes was beginning to fade.

"I'm so proud of you. I was sixteen when I got pregnant with you. The only thing that kept me going was the hope that I'd have a little girl. I was going to raise her better than my parents raised me. She would know about the sanctity of her body, and that she didn't need to give it to the first quarterback that made eyes at her."

"Dad was a quarterback."

"My point exactly."

The two of them laughed at this.

"Don't get me wrong. I love your father. I've loved him from the moment that we met, although he thinks we met a year later than we did. It was hard work getting him to notice me as an under developed freshman."

"Mom, I really didn't need to hear this." Angela was blushing furiously.

"You are so innocent, my little girl. I never really noticed this before when you were Jared. Of course I always assumed that Jared…well…I'm the one who told your dad to give you a condom."

Angela's mouth dropped open, and she turned completely red. Her mom laughed at her, and finally Angela smiled.

"So, you about ready to get out of here? You've already missed a month of school, and we need to figure out what we're going to do with your transcripts."

"Mom! I've been turned into a girl, and all you can think about is getting me back into school?"

"Well, we'll have to get you some clothing first, of course."

At the mention of clothing, Angela blushed. "Does that mean I have to wear a bra?"

"Of course it does, you lady."

"No dresses though. I don't want to wear any dresses."

"You don't have to, Angela. It's a girl's prerogative to wear what she wants, most of the time. Most of the place. Some places they have a problem with a proper tom boy, but most of the time, most of the world over, it is fine for you to wear what you want."

"Good. I want shorts and tee shirts then."

"You never wore shorts before…"

"Have you seen my legs? They're completely hairless and just gorgeous."

"You aren't shaving them?"

"Not once."

"I'm jealous, I'll tell you that."

Angela giggled. She'd never had her mother jealous of any part of her body before, and she really did like the way her legs looked.

Her mom left the room and went back to talk to Samuel.

"When can we take her home?"

"We'd like to keep her here for another week for observation, but you should be able to get her on the 31^st."

"That's still four days from now."

"We want to be careful."

"Ok, but we were hoping to get her before that. The 31^st is her birthday."

"Then we could throw a party for her here…"

"No, we'll do something for her at home, after we get her out of here."

Angela looked out the window at the manicured lawns and carefully shaped trees. She was getting out of here today. She tugged again at the straps of the bra, uncomfortable to be wearing such a weird piece of clothing. The mere thought of it no longer made her blush, she just wished that she didn't have to wear one.

Her parents were coming to get her today.

She smiled at the thought. In just a few short hours…

She doubled over and fell to the ground in a fetal position. Then the lights went out.

There were screams of fear and pain coming from outside her room, and Samuel burst into the room.

"What's happening to me?"

"Your body is ready. It's telling you that the transformation is finally complete. We need to get out of here, though, since we've just run out of time. They're here to get you."

"I still don't trust you!"

"I never did anything to you."

"Both sides in this just want one thing! Me. Why does everyone want me?"

"Because you'll be the mother of the next generation."

"I'm not going to be anyone's mother."

"Not yet, maybe, but eventually."

"Never."

"Just come. We need to get out of here."

The light flashed all around them, but none of it touched them. They still needed her in one piece it seemed.

They ran out through the door when a shot rang out. Blood blossomed on Samuel's chest and he collapsed to the ground. Red bubbles flecked his lips as he screamed, "Run, Angela. Get out of here."

Another shot sounded and he collapsed to the ground.

A figured walked up to her as she sat there, unsure what to do. She needed to get the bullets out of him if he were going to survive, but she had no tools to do it with. She put her hand on his chest, but hands grabbed her from behind and dragged her back.

"They told me if I helped them, that I'd get you," Scolletti said. I kissed her roughly on the mouth and then laughed as she spit out the taste of him.

"You don't have to like it. I'll take your ass any way I can get it. I know you'll like it, though. I know you were flashing me intentionally at the station. You wanted me even then."

Hooded figured converged on them and he dragged her toward a van. She'd had enough.

"Leave me ALONE!"

She pulled out of their grasp, and ran back to the building. Someone there should be able to help her. Anyone…

Samuel's body was missing. In its place was a figure glowing with light. "Your time here is done!" The figure commanded. The hooded figures rushed away, except for one. He dropped the hood revealing the face of Hans.

"But…you're dead," Angela said, her voice shaky.

"You think a bit of brass and lead can kill me? I'm an immortal wizard."

"You're a devil, and you know it."

"Me…but I'm only Haures….I meant Haures…" His eyes began to burn with hatred.

"I've snipped your lying tongue, devil. Now, take your imps and flee."

The light streaming in through her window woke Angela. She looked around her in wonder. It was her room, still furnished like she had in the past. White walls. Slight clutter. The closet had the new clothes that her mother had threatened.

"Oh, you're awake."

There he stood, Samuel. Not the terrible angel that she had last seen from the night before but the man who had first sat in her car. He wore the same burgundy clothing. He had the same styled haircut and goatee. He even had the silver amulet, that for the first time she realized was an angel, with the chain connected to the wing tips.

"Samuel? What happened? How are we back in my room?"

"I used a bit of my power and brought you here. I put you to sleep so that you could get some much needed rest before...before what happens next. So, are you ready to go back?"

"What? To…go back? To where?"

"We had to keep you in the form of a girl until the very end, Jared. The other's needed to believe that they still had you. They might have been able to find a replacement."

"But they were devils. They have power…"

"Where do you think they get their power? They are corruption, and gain power from corruption of innocence."

"So what do you gain power from?"

"You. And people like you. So, are you ready now to go back, Jared?"

"My name isn't Jared."

"Oh really?" Samuel asked with a smile, "What's your name?"

"My name is Angela."

Samuel laughed, smiling at her response.

"I was never really a success as a boy. I seemed to always bge a step behind, or a moment too late. I was out of sync. I figured that if I failed so badly as a guy, that I couldn't be that bad as a girl. I might as well give it a try."

"You realize that we only have a small window of opportunity in which we can still change you back? After today, you'll be stuck like this. There will be no turning back and you'll be a woman for the rest of your life."

This seemed to spark something in Angela, a memory of something said previously, "If you're an angel, how could you lie to me?"

"I'm not an angel, not the way you under stand them, and neither are our opponents demons. Through the ages people without power have named us this, or other things both flattering and not. Those like me, who gain their power for the presence of innocence and beauty, are called angels. Those who get their power from the corruption of virtue, they are demons. They thought that corrupting that cop, getting him to act on his impulses, would bring them enough power to be able to take us on in our stronghold."

Angela giggled a bit at this.

"No, they didn't gain enough power. And you were considerable more pure than even they could have hoped."

"What did those demons mean, when they said I'd be the mother of a whole new generation?"

"You are a complete woman, Angela. In all regards. If they had defiled you last night, it's a good possibility you would have become pregnant, and with it being All Hallow's Eve, a day of power for them, your child would have been the greatest of them. He would have ushured in a new era of darkness that we wouldn't soon recover from."

"I'm a complete woman?"

"You felt your first cramp yesterday. Not that it's yet your time, but you will have them every month."

Angela shuddered and paled slightly.

"Rethinking your decision?"

Angela took a deep breath, held it for a moment, and then shook her head as she exhaled, "No. I'm happy with my decision."

Nodding once, Samuel stood and moved toward the window.

"No wings?"

"No," he laughed, "I get to jump."

Angela blushed as she began to speak again, "you could, you know, stop by from time to time. Partake of my innocence..."

Samuel laughed a good hearted laugh, "I'm too old for you, and I know you didn't really mean it in the way that it sounded."

"A date here or there, then?"

"Maybe a date."

Angela sat staring out the window long after he'd left, wondering what her future would hold. There was a knock at the door, and her parents entered.

"Happy birthday, Angela."

Angela turned and smiled at them.

"You know what? Yes, it is. A very happy birthday."

Her parents laughed, and she just smiled. It was going to be a very happy day indeed.