Link: Curse of the Werewoman Title Page and Description

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Chapter 3 - I'm A What?

John awoke slowly at first, disturbed by his wife's movement in bed next to him. Not quite remembering the night before, he only knew that he felt something he'd never felt before as she snuggled up next to him and wrapped her arm around him once more.

He felt beautiful.

The closest he'd ever come to that degree of contentment was when he was five and his sister Vicky had dressed him in one of her old dresses so they could have a tea party. That was feeling pretty, though. John felt beautiful as his mind slowly began to work again.

Suddenly his eyes snapped open as the previous night's festivities came back to him in a jumble of disjointed thoughts and memories, some of which he wasn't sure were real or not, until he felt the newly familiar ache in his belly. Groaning a little, he moved to try and lie on his back, hoping it would lessen the throbbing. When he felt Diane move to lie on top of him as she did so often, he felt the slick satin of the nightgown he wore on his chest along with his wife's sleeping head.

What he didn't feel were the breasts that had been there the night before.

Sitting up suddenly, forcing Diane awake and to move off of him, John looked down and saw he was wearing the nightgown, but his arms and hands looked like their normal self. "Diane!" he shouted. "I'm me again!"

Woken too quickly for her mind to be working well, his wife looked at him bleary-eyed and confused. "John? Why're you wearing the nightgown you gave me?"

Quickly running his fingers through his hair, he found it once more the half-inch length he was used to. Moving to his face, instead of the rounded shape of the night before it was the familiar angular lines he'd been used to for most of the last decade. Moving his hands down to his chest, the breasts were gone, but the sensitivity remained, making him wince and his belly to ache even more than it had been since waking up.

"Don't you remember last night?" he asked her. "I... um... I turned into... a..."

"A woman." Diane finished for him. "I... I thought that was a dream."

"If it was, we were having the same one." he mumbled. "In your dream, did I tell you about Vicky and me when I was five?"

Nodding, Diane tied to focus better. "Um... yeah. You played girl games with her."

"Then it wasn't a dream." he admitted. "I... I never told you that before. I barely remembered it! I don't remember much from back then and nothing before Kindergarten."

Looking at her restored husband, Diane sighed in relief. "Thank God it's over, sweetie! I was so scared for you!" Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled him into a tight embrace. After a moment she felt him tense up and pulled back. "What's wrong?"

Wincing again, John got a pained expression. "I... I don't know that it is over, honey! I... I'm still having cramps! As bad as last night!"

"OK." she thought a moment. "Maybe it's just some sort of residual effect of whatever happened to you. I'll get you some pills to help for now and you can just wait until they fade away." Getting up, she did as she suggested and returned with two pills and water.

Taking them quickly, John sighed in relief. "I sure hope you're right, honey! I don't have the equipment for cramps anymore!"

"It's probably just a buildup of prostaglandin in your system." she guessed. "That's the chemical that causes cramps in women. In men it causes gastric upset, so it's likely just an upset stomach!"

"It doesn't feel like gas!" he complained. "It feels like it did last night, only worse!"

"Just give the pills a chance." she rubbed his back to help soothe him.

Feeling her rubbing the satin against his skin gave him mixed emotions. On one hand it felt very relaxing, but on the other it reminded him that he was still wearing his wife's nightgown for no good reason. "Um... I guess I can lose your nightgown, honey."

Suddenly very conscious of the fact that he was still wearing it, and seeing him blush heavily at mentioning it, Diane stopped rubbing his back. "Oh. I guess it's a little upsetting that you..."

"...that I'm wearing your nightgown and underwear? Yeah!" he concluded her thought. Getting up, John made his way to the bathroom. Removing the gown, he noticed blood stains on it. "Oh crap!" he whined.

"What's wrong?" his wife asked concernedly as she followed him in.

"I got blood all over your nightgown!" he nearly cried. "It... it's ruined! This won't ever come out!"

Giggling at his highly emotional outburst, she wiped the smile off her face when she saw him turn to her with an upset expression. "Sorry! It's just... well... after last night, I think losing a nightgown rates pretty low on the things to be worried about! You can try and clean it!"

"Good point." he sighed, tossing the gown in the hamper. "I'll try, anyway."

After changing out of her underwear and disposing of the soaked pad, John found he needed a shower to clean blood that had gotten all over his privates. By the time he was done the pills had taken effect and he almost felt normal, other than the fact the he could tell they were still there, just that the pain was masked.

Just before lunch, when he excused himself to use the bathroom, he secretly took two more pills as the cramps were starting to return. Pushing through the pain until they kicked in, John was trying to pretend that everything was back to normal as they resumed settling into their new home. As they ate their mid-day meal together, Diane wanted to talk.

"John? About last night."

Sighing and trying to hide his pain, he put down his sandwich. "What about it?" he asked irritatedly. "Can't we just forget it ever happened?"

"Well, we have to deal with one part of it." his wife pressed. "Vicky."

"Oh." he looked down embarrassedly. "We... we don't ever have to bring that up again, honey."

"That's going to be hard for me to do, sweetie!" she admitted. "I mean, we're supposed to see your sister at the Halloween Party! I'm going to have a hard time looking her in the eye and not be thinking about it!"

"It just one of those stupid things kids do!" he snapped. Biting his tongue, he winced at another cramp and sighed. "I'm sorry, Diane! I... I guess maybe we do need to talk about it."

Pushing her plate aside, she reached out and took his hand. "It's OK, sweetie. Just... just tell me about it. Was it something you two did a lot? Just once in a while? Was it ever your idea or was it only ever hers?"

Shrugging as the pain began to lessen, John looked away shyly. "Um... I think it was my idea most of the time. Like I said, I don't remember back that far too well. I don't think it was very often, at least I don't remember it being all that often. It made me sad when it would be a long..." Stopping, he swallowed nervously. "Um... what I mean is... um... it... um..."

Squeezing his hand and smiling, Diane tried to reassure him. "It's OK, John! I'm not mad, OK? Just... just finish what you were going to say."

Nodding and pursing his lips, he took a breath. "Um... I think it made me sad when she wouldn't want to play girl games with me for a while. I... I remember one time right before Mom caught us that it'd been a long time since the last time and... um... I... I kinda almost begged her to play... um... to play... uh... dollhouse."

Giggling lightly, Diane stopped when she noticed it made him blush. "Oh, John! I think it's cute!"

"It's also embarrassing for me now!" he retorted. "I don't want you to think I still feel that way! You married a man!"

"I married you." she corrected him. "If that's a man or a woman, I don't care! I fell for you after the first time we talked, not the first time I saw you!"

Smirking at the sentiment, he took a tiny bite. "It's fine. It's all over now and we can just forget the whole thing!"

By five-thirty that afternoon, John was lying on the couch and sweating as though it were a hundred degrees in the house instead of the cool seventy-two that it was. Curled up in a ball, his moans were nearly constant.

Diane checked his temperature again, just to be sure. "It still says you only have half a degree of temperature! How bad are the pains now?"

"Worse than ever!" he almost cried. Feeling another sharpness in his belly, he withdrew his hand and stared at it with eyes wide. "Diane! Look!"

As the two watched, John's nails began to grow visibly. Over the next several minutes as the sun finished setting, the two once more saw John revert to Joan. When it was almost finished, a large stain appeared in his pants; much more than would be normal for the woman he was once again.

"John!" Diane gasped. "Bathroom! Now!" Taking his thin feminine arm, she almost carried him to the tub and stripped his clothes off, unleashing a minor torrent of blood once clear of obstruction. "This is too much!" she nearly panicked. "You're bleeding as much as a woman does during a whole day!"

Grabbing the shower wand, she washed the collected blood away and shut off the water to see if the bleeding continued. When it didn't, she breathed a sigh of relief. "It... it's OK, John! You... you've stopped for now!" she panted as she began to calm down.

Sitting up in the tub, John held his stomach. "The... the pain is a lot better now." he panted in his once more feminine voice. "It still hurts, but not nearly as bad as before." Wincing slightly, he regretted saying anything about the pain.

Going through the motions once more, an hour later the two ended up on the couch cuddling with one another with John wearing the gray sweats and sports bra again.

Running her fingers through John's long hair as it seemed to help soothe him, Diane shook her head. "OK, let's think this out logically."

Turning to face her, John's feminine features showed incredulous disbelief. "Logically? Diane... I'm a woman again! What's logical about that?"

"Just hear me out!" she stated calmly, making him turn and lay against her once more. When he was relaxed again, she resumed her line of thought. "OK... so a month ago, this Francine lady scratched your arm. It healed very quickly, too quickly really, but then yesterday you turned into a woman."

"Last evening, you mean." he pointed out calmly and softly.

Stopping suddenly, Diane realized she'd failed to notice the time. "Joan? Um... what time did all this start? Yesterday, I mean."

"You were just starting dinner, so about five-thirty." he answered. "Why?"

Sitting him up, Diane turned him to face her. "That's the same time it started tonight, Joan! Right..."

"...at sundown!" they chorused.

Following her gut, Diane grabbed her smartphone and did a quick search. Getting her result quickly, her eyes widened. "No! That's... that's impossible!"

"What the hell, Diane!" he screeched. "What happened to me? What am I?"

Swallowing hard, Diane's eyes were wide. "Um... Joan? Remember all the myths and stuff about werewolves?" Seeing the confused look on his face, she pressed on. "Sweetie... the day you were scratched was the third night of the full moon... and last night was two nights from the full moon!"

"So what!" he shrieked again.

"Don't you see?" she pleaded. "What exactly did Mrs. Brookes say to you about Francine, sweetie!? Exactly! It's important!"

Calming himself down, John thought back. "I... I'm not sure." he whined.

"Think, sweetie!" she insisted. "You've got to remember!"

Closing his eyes, John took a breath and pushed all his feelings aside. "OK. After Francine grabbed the gift basket and ran, Janice came to the door. She said something like, 'Oh! What are you doing here?' and I said I was there to deliver the basket. Then she said something about Francine being Frank's twin sister and that she was only staying until Wednesday."

Looking at her phone she nodded and put it down, now sure she was right. "Sweetie? I... I don't think there is a Francine! I think that was Frank!"

His complexion paled as he began to absorb the idea. "W... whaddya mean, that was Frank? You mean... he's like me?"

"More like you're like him now, sweetie!" she slightly corrected him. "You were scratched during the full moon by Frank's 'twin sister'." she emphasized with air quotes. "A sister that was going away two days later. Then two days before the first night of the full moon, you turn into a woman! The full moon lasts three days! Don't you see it, John!"

"No!" he squealed.

"Two days before and after the three days of the full moon! That's seven days every month, John! What happens to me for seven days out of every month!?"

Slowly the thought processed in his clouded mind. His eyes widened and he shook his head fearfully. "No!" he whispered. "That... that's impossible!"

Nodding her head, Diane made him listen. "It's true, sweetie! It starts as the moon rises and the sun sets... then the next morning you're normal again... only for it to start again after the next sunset! John... it's true! You're a... a... a werewoman!" she almost whispered in fear.

"I'm a what?" he furrowed his brow in confusion.

"A werewoman!" she repeated herself more emphatically. "Like a werewolf, only instead of a snarling beast, you're a..."

"...snarling bitch!" he interrupted her harshly.

"Joan!" Diane whined. "That's not funny! I'm serious!"

"The hell it isn't funny!" he retorted. "It's a joke! This whole thing is a joke! A werewoman, Diane? Really?"

"It's the only thing that fits!" she insisted.

Taking a breath, John closed his eyes and centered himself. Breathing slowly and deeply a few times, he considered all the facts. Finally opening his eyes slowly, he looked at his wife. "OK. You're right. It does fit and it is serious. What do we do? The werewolf stories say that the only way to end the curse is to get shot by a silver bullet! That would kill me!"

"I don't think it's exactly the same, Joan!" she answered snidely. "Maybe there's another way to end this curse! We should go see the Brookes'!"

"Why them?" he snapped more shrilly than he'd intended. "I mean, if they knew how to cure it, wouldn't they have done it already?"

"Maybe they just hadn't done it yet last month!" Diane offered hopefully. "I mean, you haven't talked to them since closing have you?"

Shaking his head slowly, John gave in. "No, I haven't... and you're right. They're the only ones who could possibly believe us and might know the answer. It's a place to start, anyway." he sighed.

Getting up, Diane helped John up as well. "Come on, sweetie! We're going to the old Foster home! Put some shoes on."

"What, now?" John squeaked. "I can't leave the house looking like this!"

"You look fine!" she tried to reassure him. "We need to fix this, John! You bled so much tonight! I'm afraid it might kill you!"

Realizing her fear was well founded, John nodded. "Alright. We'll go. I'll need my jacket, though."

"It's not that cold out tonight, Joan!" Diane scoffed as she grabbed her purse and slipped into her flats.

"Not for the weather, honey!" he explained as he pulled the jacket on and grabbed a baseball cap. Twisting his long hair until he could coil it on top of his head, he covered it with the cap and slipped into his oversized shoes. "We can't let anyone see Joan leave the house, Diane! People'll start asking who she is and I'm not ready to face that kind of scrutiny!"

Conceding the point, she led him to the door. "OK. You look reasonably like your old self. Let's go!"

Creeping out the door, John pulled the jacket in close around his shoulders. When he tried to walk like a man however, the wide gait of his hips made it almost impossible. Immediately he doubled over in severe pain, falling to the sidewalk and nearly passing out before Diane caught his arm.

"John!" she whispered loudly. "What're you doing!" Grabbing his arms tightly, she held him and made him look her in the eyes. "John!"

The pain ebbing as he felt the comfort of his wife, he slowly regained control and decreased his rapid breathing. "Sorry!" he whispered. "I... I don't know what just happened! I was just trying to walk like my normal self, but I... I couldn't and then the cramps hit really hard!" he began to sob. "The pills didn't even touch it!"

"It's OK, sweetie!" Diane calmed him as she wrapped her arms around him, pressing them together tightly. "Shhh! It's alright! I've got you!" After she saw he was calm and himself again, she released her grip and slipped his arm into hers, linking their fingers together and helping him to stand once more. "Come on! We can do this!"

Making it to her car, she opened the passenger door and guided him into the seat carefully. Closing it, she ran around to the driver's seat and hopped in, starting the car. Once belted and ready, she pulled out and turned down the road, heading for the highway that exited the north side of town.

Pulling up to the darkened building, Diane slowed to a stop. "Doesn't look like anyone's here, sweetheart."

"They're here." he said barely above a whisper. "I... I can feel her near! Her heart hammering away! I... I can feel her anger! Her rage! Why is she so angry?"

"I... I don't know, sweetie." she took his hand. "Let's see if we can find out."

Getting out carefully, Diane raced around the car to take John's hand again, terrified that if he ran off this far out of town, she might not find him before morning. Walking up to the door, the two could hear thumping from deep inside the house; rhythmic and steady, nearly matching the footfalls of their slow approach. The chill in the air and overcast skies cast an ominous feel.

Stopping at the door, the two looked at one another a moment before Diane gathered her courage and knocked gently, feeling John's hand practically vibrating with fear.

"She's trapped!" he whispered in terror. "That's why she's angry!"

"It's OK, sweetie." she soothed him and squeezed his hand reassuringly. "I'm right here!"

Hearing footsteps approaching, the two waited a moment before the porch light came on.

"Who is it?" came a woman's voice from the inside.

"My name's Diane!" she said with a slightly raised voice. "Diane Henderson! We need to talk to you, Mrs. Brookes! It's urgent! Please open up!"

The door cracked open slightly as Janice Brookes looked at the two women at her door. "Did you say Henderson? Are you related to John Henderson?"

"I'm his wife, Mrs. Brookes!" Diane cried. "Please let us in! We need to talk! Something terrible has happened to John!"

Opening the door fully, she looked carefully at the woman standing next to her real estate agent's wife, eyeing John carefully. "Who's she? Does she know what's going on, too?"

"Of course she does!" Diane answered without thinking. "I mean... he does!"

"She your daughter or something? I didn't think you were old enough..."

"Janice?" the shivering man pleaded. "It... it's me! John!"

Her eyes growing wide, she immediately tried to shut the door. "No! Get her away! She's crazy!"

Stopping the door with her foot, Diane pushed her way in with John in tow. "Mrs. Brookes! We need your help!"

Backing away from John in terror, she was startled when the beating on the basement door became frantic, making her turn away from the intruders a moment before turning back to face them once more. "G... go away! We can't help you! John's too early! He's still crazy!"

Closing the door behind him, John pulled the cap and jacket off, letting his true appearance show. "Janice! I'm not crazy! I'm scared, yes! Terrified really, but not crazy! I need your help, Janice! We need your help!"

Swallowing hard, Janice looked in his eyes carefully. "You... you have full control? So fast? How's that possible? You must have gotten infected last month! This should only be your second night! How can you have control already?"

"Please!" John begged. "What's happening to me! Why is it happening?" Hearing the pounding grow louder and more furious, he couldn't help but turn to the locked door as it shook and threatened to fly apart.

Shaking her head, Janice rushed up to the two. "Please! You have to go! I'll explain tomorrow, alright? You can't stay though or she'll kill him trying to get free... to get to you!" she cried, finishing by looking at John.

Taking John's hand, Diane nodded in understanding. "We... we'll be back tomorrow! Come on, Joan!" she ordered, pulling the terrified man out the door and back to their car. Once both were back in and she was about the start the engine, they heard the pounding slow to a stop. Pulling back onto the highway, she took a breath and let it out slowly.

"That was... intense!" she stated obviously.

Unable to hold back the emotions anymore, John cried heavily. "He... she was a monster! That's what's going to happen to me! You have to leave me, Diane! Run! Just... drop me off here, drive away, and never come back!"

"Stop it!" she shouted. "Damn it, Joan! I'm never leaving you! Get that through your head! You can't make me go! There's a way out of this and we're gonna find it together! You hear me?"

Sniffing back the tears, John nodded. "O... OK. I... I just... I saw the look in Janice's eyes! She was so... scared! Not for herself, but for Frank! I couldn't stand to see you like that!"

Driving in silence a moment, Diane shook her head. "...for as long as we both shall live, Joan! No backing out! I'll be damned if some stupid curse is gonna ruin the life we want! You're just going to have to tough it out until we find the way to break it!"

Returning home, the two settled in once more, this time Diane insisting that John wear her long cotton nightie.

"Diane!" he whined. "I shouldn't! I can just sleep in the sweats! We know I'll be back to normal by morning!"

"...and leaking all over everything, and ruining my sweatpants!" she pointed out. "At least this can be bleached! We'll put a towel on the bed under you, too... just in case."

Giving in, John grabbed the nightie and trudged off to the bathroom to get clean once more, change, and take his final pills. Returning fifteen minutes later, he saw her lying in bed and looking at him as he came out. "What?"

Sighing as she turned over to watch him go over to his side of the bed, Diane smiled weakly. "Just remembering our first night here, love."

Scoffing, John shook his head. "Yeah... before I became a freak!"

"That's not what I meant!" she raised her voice. "And don't call yourself a freak! That my husband you're insulting!"

Pausing before climbing into bed, John took a breath and calmed himself. "I know. I'm sorry, honey. I... I'll try to be better." Getting into their shared bed, he once more found it impossible to get comfortable on his left side. "I miss holding you at night." he choked up.

With a gentle pull, Diane rolled him onto his back before laying her head on his cushioned chest carefully. Settling in as he wrapped a thin arm around her back, she nuzzled his neck. "I miss you holding me, too."

Lying in silence a moment, John pushed away the desire to get her away from touching his skin; the sensation making his skin crawl. Enduring it a bit, he tried to think of something, anything else. "Honey? Why were you thinking of our first night here?"

Smiling happily, his wife hummed. "Mmm!"

"Oh!" he began to understand. "I... I just wanted our first night here to be... um... memorable." his soft voice lilted almost happily.

"It was!" she cooed.

When at last he started to feel sleep begin to claim him, his eyes drifting closed heavily, his last thought was of Diane and how wonderful it felt that first night in her dream home to make her so happy and fulfilled.

That's what love's all about. he thought. Making her happy!

Chapter 4 - The Curse of the Werewoman

Pulling up in the same driveway they'd been in the night before, John turned off the motor and sighed. "OK, so lets go find out what the hell we can do about this mess!"

Both climbed out of John's car and walked up to the door together. The morning was still cold from the near frost of the night before and the early morning fog had only just lifted before getting in the car to drive to the Brookes' new home.

Knocking on the door while Dianne shivered and kept her arms wrapped around herself, John wrapped an arm around her and waited.

Opening the door quickly, Janice waved them in. "Come in! Come in! It's freezing out there!"

Entering and relishing the warmth of the room, Diane took her heavy coat off. "Thanks!" she stated through chattering teeth.

Stamping his feet to get warm, John likewise took his coat off and hung it on the hook before taking his wife's and doing the same.

"Cup of coffee to get warm?" Janice offered as she headed for the kitchen.

"Please!" Diane begged. "Anything to wrap my hands around something warm!"

Sitting at the kitchen table, the two waited while Janice prepared her guests' drinks. As she did so, there was a harsh knock on the basement door.

"Janice! Lemme out!"

Moving quickly, she unlatched the bolt that was keeping the wooden bar in place. "Sorry, Frank!" Lifting it free, she unlocked the knob and threw the deadbolt open before stepping back quickly.

"Well it's about fu..." Frank began before seeing that they had guests and stopping cold.

"Frank?" Janice tried to calm him down. "You remember John Henderson, right? The man that sold us this house?"

Stepping into the room and slamming the basement door closed, he grabbed a kitchen chair and turned it around to straddle it backwards. "So what's the beef? We forget to sign somthin'?"

Diane took the initiative to try and thaw the man's icy mood, sticking her hand out toward him. "I'm Diane Henderson! I'm glad to know you, Frank!"

Looking at her hand suspiciously, Frank slowly took it and gave it a single shake. "Mrs. Henderson." he said curtly. "This some kinda 'welcome to the neighborhood' social call, then?" Seeing his wife put down two cups of coffee for their guests, he nodded toward the kitchen. "There more o' that?"

Looking at him sternly, Janice narrowed her eyes. "Yes, and you know where the cups are!" she snapped, taking a seat of her own.

Holding up his hands in mock surrender, Frank stood up and headed for the kitchen in silence. Making his own cup, he glanced over at the two intruders. "So then... why're ya' here?"

Standing up, John stepped closer to the man. "The day you closed on the house, I forgot to give you your complimentary gift basket. My boss insisted I deliver it, personally, so I drove out here and arrived... just after sunset."

Snorting, the man poured sugar in his cup. "So you met Francine, I take it."

"More than met her, I'm afraid." John sighed. "She... um... you scratched my arm... pretty badly." he hinted, rubbing the long-healed wound that might never really heal.

His innuendo brought Frank's head up with an almost audible snap. "I... I mean, she scratched ya'?" Seeing John nod, he pursed his lips and walked back to the table with his cup. "Let's see... that was 'bout a month ago, so... welcome to the suckage club, Johnny!" Taking his backward seat once more, he sipped the beverage calmly. "I hope ya' weren't comin' here to figure out how ta' get out of this mess, 'cause it's impossible. You can't."

"That's not true, Frank!" Janice barked. "Just because you couldn't break the curse doesn't mean..."

"No man can do it!" he snapped back. "It's impossible! That stupid witch knew that when she did it! It's unbreakable!"

"Wait a moment!" Diane interrupted their argument. "What witch? What curse? I mean, what's actually going on? Why is John turning into a woman every night? I thought it was something like a werewolf, but as a woman!"

"She calls it a werewoman." John quipped as he sat back down with the other three.

Snorting his coffee, Frank sputtered for a moment before grabbing a napkin and wiping his face. As he did so, Janice started to giggle with Diane shortly behind her. John just smiled weakly.

Throwing the napkin down, Frank huffed. "Fine! Make fun a' the cursed guys! OK, yeah! She is like a freakin' werewolf, only worse! At least a wolf serves a purpose! This bitch is jus' a shriekin' harpy! Right, John?"

Their laughter dying, John furrowed his brow. "I... I saw you that way."

Shaking his head, Frank scoffed. "Hate ta' tell ya' buddy, but you did the exact same thing last night! Don't feel bad, I didn't remember at first either. Now I'm glad I don't!"

"Frank?" Janice interjected. "Um... John was here last night... in control!"

Looking shocked, he turned to the man sitting to his left. "How the hell ya' manage that!? Took me four months ta' get control, for all the good it did! I'm glad I lose control now! At least outta control, I don't remember nothin' and all I 'member is bein' a guy all the time!"

"What about Janice, though?" Diane wondered. "She was so terrified for you last night!"

"Better that than the alternative!" he muttered.

"What alternative?" John wondered.

"Being a chick!" he shouted. "Worse, being a chick on the rag every time! The PMS is bad enough!"

"You get PMS?" Diane asked clinically. "I mean, how it that possible?"

"That's just what Frank calls the bleeding when he's in guy form during the days that's he's Francine at night." Janice explained. "It's not really PMS."

"How can Frank bleed during the day?" she pressed. "I'm a nurse. I know enough to know that's not possible."

Looking at her blankly, Janice furrowed her brow. "Didn't John have the pain before the change last night? Followed by a lot of blood?"

"Yes!" Diane answered. "Way more than menstrual bleeding!"

"Not if you can't get rid of it all day!" Frank grumbled. "That's why it all comes out at once when ya' change on the second day... and the third... fourth... fifth... sixth... and seventh days! By the time the change gets close, it feels like yer belly's 'bout to burst!"

Finally understanding what happened the evening before, Diane nodded. "I see! Yes! That makes sense! Except where's the blood coming from during the day? Men don't have an endometrium to shed!"

"We do." Frank groused. "Even in guy form that week, we got all the internal plumbing! Just no way in or out! It goes away after the week's over and we get three whole weeks ta' just be normal guys!"

"How do you know this?" John asked in awe.

Blushing, Janice looked away. "We... um... we stole a sonogram machine last year, when we were still trying to end the curse!"

"Not too hard to figure out how ta' use if you have the time..." Frank pointed out. "...and the motivation!"

"Plus there's the book." Janice offered.

"Janice!" Frank yelled. "Now don't go gettin' their hopes up with that stupid book nonsense! It didn't work for me!" Grabbing his belly, he groaned.

"Bad already?" Janice winced in sympathy for him.

Nodding silently, her husband settled his nerves and was able to relax. "One of the worst parts! The more ya' fight it, the worse it gets!"

Getting up, Janice headed into the living room briefly to return with an old leather-bound tomb. "We found this in the library in town."

"Supposedly, it was brought here by the rat bastard that brought the curse with him! Then made sure ta' spread it around a little!"

"How did you get the curse?" John wondered.

"Pft!" he half-heartedly laughed. "I was working late at the shop one night and this crazy bitch starts bangin' on the door. Thought maybe she was in trouble, like bein' chased by a rapist or somethin', so stupid me goes and opens the door! Then she bit me and ran off!"

"So you have no idea who it was?" Diane queried.

"Not a friggin' clue!" he spat bitterly. "If I knew, I'd of beat his fool head in by now!"

Taking the book carefully, Diane opened it to a dog-eared section. "The Curse of Maggie Greendale." she read aloud.

"That's the bitch that started the whole thing!" Frank hissed.

"Maggie Greendale lived in East Lyme, Connecticut in the mid to late sixteen hundreds." she continued. "She was accused of witchcraft in sixteen-eighty and was said to have cursed her accusers, specifically the men of the village, with an unending torment that she claimed no man could escape."

"They ain't kiddin', neither!" Frank continued to complain. "There's no way any man could ever do what she demanded!"

"The next page has the actual text of the curse." Janice offered. "That's the only important part."

Turning the crackling paper, Diane started reading.

"Swift curse shall doom yer' childless men,
taken by the moon and then,
stricken by the blood they'll be,
sev'n days, the same as we!

No man can face the lunacy!
His mind would break and rage she'll see!
With ev'ry push to fight his fate,
the ire shall take him from his mate!

Only way to fight this curse,
to bend on knee will quench its thirst!
A year plus one she will abide,
and her face he must not hide!

'Er by that day she must control,
by night she lives, the day's his role.
What more, he must accept his place,
abiding hap'ly with her face!

One last task, to end this way
his wife must give her heart away
to she alone, else face the rage!
Their hearts entwined shall be assuaged!

By day the man, by night the she
which one to chose, his choice must be!
Guess the hidden hope of wife
and locked he'll be that way for life!

But guess he wrong and break her heart
then ne'er shall go his counterpart!
For only death shall stop their blood
each lunar time, her frenzied flood!"

Silence filled the room as the four pondered the words a moment.

Janice cleared her throat before continuing. "According to some experts on the occult, if anyone could ever meet the conditions of the curse and break it, it would free everyone afflicted! Something about the way she worded the second-to-last line."

"Hogwash!" Frank spewed. "We did everything there and it didn't work!"

Looking at her husband, Janice shook her head. "You never really embraced being Francine, Frank! You couldn't just pretend to! I told you that!"

"What's this?" John asked curiously.

"It's a reference to the fourth stanza." Janice explained coolly. "See? 'What more, he must accept his place, abiding hap'ly with her face!' It means that a man with the curse has to learn to embrace being his female half."

"Fat chance of that!" Frank scoffed. "Hard to embrace it when it's nothing but bleeding, bloated, misery! I ain't heard you ever 'embrace' being a woman when it's your time bleedin'! You complain nearly as much as me!"

Closing the book carefully, Diane put her hands on it protectively. "May... may we take this with us? I'd like to study it more."

"Take it and good riddance!" Frank waved at the book dismissively. "It's just a bunch of hooey! Some nonsense some geek wrote down about local folklore that prob'ly ain't got nothin' ta' do with this bloody curse! It's like you said! It's like werewolves! Only way out is ta' eat a silver bullet!"

"Frank!" Janice whined. "You know it's true! It all fits together too well!"

Dismissing her insistence with a wave, he got up and walked away.

Hearing the bedroom door slam, Janice winced. "He's always a little cranky after a night... um..."

"We understand." Diane smiled sympathetically. "We should go. You've told us pretty much all there is to know and you've got your own problems to deal with! Can we have your number if we have any other questions?"

Giving Diane her cell phone number, the two got ready to leave before Frank re-emerged. As they walked out the door, Janice smiled weakly at Diane. "I heard you call him Joan last night. It's nice! Maybe Joan can do it... break the curse, I mean. It... it's all the hope I have left. Frank used to be so sweet and nice before all this. Now he's frustrated and angry all the time."

"We'll try." Diane offered, giving the woman a quick hug before departing.

Driving them back home, John started thinking. "Honey? About tomorrow. How'm I gonna work it? The office doesn't close until seven, which is an hour and a half after sunset! Same for all this week!"

Thinking hard, she smiled. "Remember when you started at the agency, sweetie? Remember what Mrs. Moon said to me?"

"Um... something about if you ever needed anything, she'd be glad to help?"

"She said that if I ever needed you home earlier she'd arrange it so you'd be home when I needed you to be! She knew we were newlyweds and was probably thinking of how people usually are when they're just starting out! You know, can't keep their hands off each other?"

"Most newlyweds haven't been dating six years first." he pointed out. "Not much around here, anyway! You get two kinds... the ones that get married right away so they're not 'sinning out of wedlock' and the ones that never get married and just shack-up the rest of their lives!"

"I thought you'd never say yes!" Diane beamed.

"Yeah, well I had to quit shaming the family!" he quipped before chuckling lightly. Regretting it almost immediately, John grabbed his stomach. "Ooo! That one hurt!"

"Don't they all?"

Nodding sideways, he conceded the point. "True enough. That one tried to reach out and grab me though."

Lost in thought a while, the rest of the trip home was quiet. When they at last were back inside, Diane put the book down and opened it to the curse. "John? I was thinking about your cramps and the curse. Listen to this part. 'No man can face the lunacy. His mind would break and rage she'll see.' I think there's something to that."

"So that's why I keep feeling those drives to be angry like Francine?" he wondered as he sat on the couch.

"I don't think 'rage' means anger in this case." she supposed. "Look, in the other passages, anger is written as 'ire' or 'frenzy'. Rage appears twice, here and here." she pointed at the text.

Nodding, he accepted her point. "OK, so what does rage mean then?"

"I think it might be some old-world way of saying cramps, John! Think about it! When are your cramps the worst?"

"Right before sunset." he shuddered.

"I mean just the cramps, not the pressure because you can't release until you change. Isn't there a difference between the two?"

Thinking hard, he nodded. "Come to think of it, yes. There is a difference. The cramps are more... spasmy... like a Charley Horse in my belly. The ones before sunset are more like when you're badly constipated. It just hurts."

"I think we can reduce the cramps, John!"

"How?" he asked her seriously.

"Um... you won't like it." she warned him.

"Just tell me, honey!" John almost begged.

Taking a breath, Diane put her idea forward. "I think Maggie was saying that when you fight the curse, it brings the 'rage'... the cramps. See the word lunacy there? As in Luna? The Moon?"

"So that's what ties the change to the phase of the moon?" he asked.

"No, that's the line, 'taken by the moon'. What I think this line means refers to when people used to think that the Moon caused madness. That's why they called it lunacy. Another word for crazy back then was hysterical, from the Latin word hystericus, meaning 'of the womb'. Tie the two together and..."

"...you get 'No man can face the womb'." he filled in her blank. "OK, so if he can't face it, then his 'mind would break'. He... um... he goes crazy?"

"I don't think so. I think 'break' there is more like rebelling... like breaking free? So the line then reads, 'No man can face the idea of being a woman, he'll rebel against it and get cramps'!"

Looking at her, John thought a moment before his eyes went wide. "Like that first night we went to the Brookes' and I tried to walk like myself... like a man... and I got that bad cramp!"

"Exactly!" Diane smiled.

John's enthusiasm died as he followed the thought to its ultimate conclusion. "That means to make this bearable, I have to stop trying to act like myself!"

"...and stop fighting it." she added. "That line, 'Only way to fight this curse, to bend on knee will quench its thirst'? To 'bend on knee' means to submit to what someone or something else wants, and not what you want."

Taking it all in, John nodded. "So in order to reduce the cramps and hope to end the curse, I have to be a woman seven nights a month... willingly... and eventually learn to like it, in spite of the fact that that the only time I am one I'm menstruating?"

"I think you can do it, John!" his wife took his hand and squeezed it. "Of all the men that have ever gotten this, how many of them wanted to be a girl when they were little? You just have to reach back and embrace that little girl inside you and let her loose!"

"There's more to it, though." he scowled. "It says, 'A year plus one'. I have to keep it up for a year and a day, I'm guessing, and I can't hide away like she's not there."

"So Joan has to become part of our household." Diane accepted. "We have to treat Joan when you're her like it's normal and not keep it hidden away, the way Frank locks himself up when he's Francine." Reading on, she bit her lower lip. "This part's interesting. 'his wife must give her heart away to she alone, else face the rage.' Does that mean what I think it means?"

Nodding, John looked away embarrassedly. "I... I think so. It... it means you have to fall in love with Joan. So that's it, then! I'm doomed! That's not even fair! That's not anything I can do anything about!"

"Yes it is!" she insisted. "Sweetie, it means you have to want me to love Joan! If you don't, I can't... but if you do..."

Looking in her eyes, John smiled shyly. "Their hearts entwined shall be assuaged."

"It's the way out!" Diane smiled back. "We just go on with life as though you being Joan is normal. You accept it and just enjoy being a woman without fighting it or trying to 'man-up', we continue loving each other as though this is a good thing, and then..." She paused as she looked at the last stanzas and furrowed her brow. "This part I'm not sure about. Can you make sense of it?"

Nodding, he turned away. "I'm pretty sure it's saying that at the end of the year and a day I have to pick if I want to live the rest of my life as a man or as a woman. Even more, I have to pick what you want me to be without you telling me. See that part, 'Guess the hidden hope of wife'? So after a year of living and loving together as both man and wife and woman and wife, I have to guess which one you love more."

"That's easy!" she purred, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. "I'll want whatever you want!"

"I don't think it's that simple." he grimaced. "I think the curse knows what we hide even from ourselves and that after a year, you will want one over the other... even if you don't know it! That's the 'hidden hope' part. I guess I'm supposed to know you well enough to be able to tell, even if you can't."

Hugging him one-armed, Diane still smiled. "Why don't we cross that bridge when we get to it! In the mean time, we know Joan is here to stay for a week out of each month. Back to practical concerns."

"The one I can't get out of my head is what the hell I'm supposed to do about the Halloween party Wednesday!" John whined. "I mean, Vicky's expecting me and I won't be done this month until Friday morning!"

Smirking, Diane couldn't help herself. "Well, you could always go as Joan! I mean, there is a resemblance!"

"Ha, ha!" he sneered. "I don't look anything like John as Joan!"

Raising an eyebrow, his wife looked at her carefully. "Referring to yourself in the third person now? Or is John someone else now?"

Scowling and biting his lower lip, John tried to explain. "I almost have to think of Joan as a different person. I need to just go with the flow here and not fight what comes naturally to me. Getting back to Halloween though, I don't think Joan could pass as John in drag!"

Thinking about how Joan looked critically, Diane shook her head. "No... I think you could pull it off! Your face is generally the same... a little rounder, but your eyes, nose, and general facial structure is still there. If I unfocus my eyes and ignore the hair, it's hard to tell the difference. Add a lot of makeup and people could fall for it! Besides, I don't think you have any choice! You don't show and your sister will kill you!"

"I know!" he sighed. "I wish I could remember being Joan when I was little better, though. It might help."

"Maybe you should ask Vicky. She was older, so maybe she remembers more than you do. Going to the party as Joan should help break the ice!"

"You still plan an going as 'the naughty nurse'?"

"No." Diane sighed. "Given that you won't be going as Dr. Feelgood, it just seems trashy! I need something that matches with you! I can't pull off a guy costume, though!" Thinking a moment, she got a devilish look on her face. "Sweetie? What would you think if we went as hookers?"

Looking at Diane as though she'd gone 'round the bend, John slowly shook his head. "Are you serious? I'm just getting used to the idea and you want me to go out in public dressed like a tramp? With guys ogling me?"

"You didn't seem to mind the idea of guys being able to ogle me as your naughty nurse!" she countered. "Turnabout's fair play, sweetie!"

Blushing heavily, John looked away. "You're right. It is fair. The difference is that you've had years to get used to the idea of being stared at! I've had like two days!"

"Trial by fire, sweetie!" Diane chuckled. "Every girl has had a first time out wearing something a little less than 'proper', and did it without practice! So welcome to the club, sweetie!"

Smiling slightly at feeling included, John thought about it a moment. "Um... a... alright. If it's what you want to do, honey."

Leaning over, Diane kissed his cheek gently. "Trust me, love! You'll have a blast! Now about work..."

Spending an hour looking at online lunar calendars, sunrise and sunset times, and when Joan's 'time of the month' was due to start and end for the next several months, the two managed to hash out a workable schedule.

Grabbing her phone, Diane looked through her contacts and pressed a button. Putting the phone to her ear, she only had to wait a moment. "Hello, Barb? It's Diane!"

"Diane!" Barbara Moon smiled. "Good to hear from you! How's John?"

"Oh, John's fine!" she replied absently. "Listen, remember when John started and you offered to let him work a different schedule if I needed him to? Well, I need him to! He can't work past five for a while. I'll need him home by five-ten at the latest for the foreseeable future!"

"Scheduling problems at the hospital?" Barbara asked curiously.

"You know how it is!" she didn't really answer. "They think nurses are just machines! Wind us up and we can go for days, right?"

Laughing, Barbara nodded. "Yes! My mother was a nurse, so I understand! That's why I offered! I knew it was just a matter of time before you needed his schedule to be flexible! Looks like he'll be doing most of the cooking and cleaning around the house for a bit while you wear the pants in the family!"

"You have no idea, Barb!" she quipped lightly. "I just need some extra help for a bit while we get our schedules sorted out. Probably just over the winter. After that he should be able to go back to the later schedule."

"That's fine with me!" Barbara beamed. "We usually have shorter hours in the winter anyway because so few people move that time of the year, these last few especially! We'll just move to the winter schedule a little early!"

"Sounds like it'll work out good for everyone then!" Diane pointed out. "So John will be in a little earlier tomorrow, then. Sound good?"

"Sounds fine, Diane! Tell him I'll see him at eight-thirty and he can leave at five! Since you live so close, he should be able to get there in time to cook dinner for you every night!" she giggled.

"Thanks, Barb! See you later! Bye!" Hanging up, she smiled at John. "There! You're working eight-thirty to five from now on, so work is solved!"

"That still leaves Christmas Night and New Years Eve as problems, though. I can't exactly have dinner at Vicky's house as Joan!" he complained. "Dad would have a conniption and think of her kids!"

"That's a problem for two months from now." Diane calmed him. "As for New Year's, you won't be up for going out that night anyway since the first few days are always the worst."

"But it's our first New Year's Eve!" John fussed. "I wanted it to be special!"

"We'll have other New Year's Eves together!" she comforted. "Besides, it's not like we haven't spent the last six together!"

"But this was the first one together as a married couple!"

"We'll just have to beg off party invites and say we want to spend it alone! People will understand!"

Nodding in reluctant acceptance, John looked at their rough schedule. "I guess those are all the major problems for now."

"Nope!" Diane continued. "There's one more. We'll need to set aside this evening to go shopping for clothes for Joan. We can't go with you as John because you'll need to try things on, so we'll have to wait until sundown. You'll get dressed and we'll go out and get you the things you'll need. Just the basics... bras, underwear, some simple tops and pants... Oh! and a really sexy outfit for Halloween!"

Groaning, John leaned on his hands. "You're really serious about that, aren't you? You seriously wanna see me dressed all slutty?"

Wrapping her arms around him, Diane kissed him deeply. "Sweetie? I can't wait to see it!"