Ellis is working in a book store when several people start arriving, each looking for a mysterious book. He soon finds himself in over his head.

-------------------

I leaned back slightly and took a bite of my sandwich, not taking my eyes from the page of the book that I was currently reading. I was in the middle of my lunch but couldn't actually leave for it since I was the only one in the store at the moment. But that was fine with me as I wanted to finish up my book anyway.

My name is Ellis Meyers, and I am a 6 foot tall, 19-year-old with glasses and dark hair. I'm also a bookworm, which explains why I chose to work at a used book store in order to earn enough money for college.

"Let's see," I mused as I flipped the page of my book, pausing to take another bite from my sandwich. "Do I finish the chapter now, or come back to it later?" Of course, that was no choice at all and I continued to read.

Just then, the bell above the door began to ring as a customer entered the store. He had long blond hair and was wearing a gray overcoat and fedora type hat. There wasn't anything too unusual about the guy, at least not that I could see, but for some reason I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand up.

The man stopped just inside of the store entrance and looked around silently. His eyes scanned the many racks of used books before he turned his attention to me. After removing his hat and stepping toward the counter where I was still eating my lunch, he stated, "I am looking for a book..."

I just stared at the man for a moment, thinking that it sounded like a dumb thing to say in a book store. We were surrounded by books of all sorts. "Any particular book?" I asked with a faint smile.

"Yes," he smiled back, "A very particular book. It is a very old book, bound in black leather and without any markings or writing on the outside. I was told that it had been delivered to this store."

"I haven't seen anything like that," I responded slowly, adjusting my glasses as I looked over the shelves. "I think I would have remembered if I had. Maybe Mr. Birch, the store's owner might have."

"May I speak with him?" the man in gray asked politely.

"He's not here today," I shrugged. "He only comes in a couple times a week."

"Then do you have a number I can use to contact him?" he asked me with a frown. "It is very urgent."

I knew Mr. Birch's phone number, but I wasn't about to give it to someone I didn't know, so I shook my head. "I can leave a message for him if you'd like though..."

"No thank you," the man in gray frowned, "I'll come back later. But if you see the book, please put it in a safe place for me. And whatever you do, don't open it. The pages are very...fragile."

The man in gray put his hat back on, gave me a nod and left the store. I just remained where I was, shaking my head in disbelief. "That's was weird..."

In spite of the strangeness of the situation, I didn't really spare much further thought on the man in gray or the book he was looking for. Instead, I went back to reading my own book, eager to find out how the main character would escape the vampire lord's stronghold and rescue the heroine.

But just forty minutes after the main in gray left, another strange customer came through the door. This one was a very sexy looking blond haired, blue eyed, teenage girl of about 14-years-old. She casually walked up to the counter, winked at me and said, "I'm looking for a book..."

"Let me guess," I sighed, "It's really old and has a black leather cover..."

"So you have seen it," she grinned at me with an almost predatory look. "Where is it?"

I blinked in surprise, not expecting that to actually be the book she was looking for. "Um...no," I responded, suddenly getting more curious about this book that they were looking for. "Someone else came in and asked for a book like that a little while ago. But like I told him, I haven't seen it."

"Really?" the girl asked, staring at me with such an intense look that I felt chills go down my spine. Then her demeanor changed back to being flirty again. She winked at me, "I believe you cutie... So, who else asked about the book?"

I stared at the girl for a moment, wondering if I should take her seriously, though something about her told me that I should. Finally, I shrugged, "Some guy wearing a gray trench coat."

"Ah," the girl gasped, her eyes going wide with a look of recognition. Then she abruptly turned and hurried out of the store, calling out, "Come Pip...the game is afoot."

Once the girl was gone, I shook my head again, wondering if someone was playing some kind of a joke on me. This was just a bit weird, with two people coming in and asking about a book that I'd never seen. "I have got to find out about this book..."

I tried going back to the book that I was reading but all I could think of was the one they had both been looking for. So after a short while, I started to look around the store, just in case I might have missed it. But I didn't see anything like the book the man in gray described to me.

It was then that UPS arrived with our weekly shipment, dropping a large box that was filled books. My heart jumped the moment I saw the delivery. And the moment that I had the box inside, I tore into it, finding what I was looking for right in the middle.

"Here it is," I exclaimed, carefully holding up the book.

The book was exactly as the man in gray had described it. It was about the size of a phone book and bound in black leather that didn't have a single marking on it. And though it seemed to be in good shape, it somehow felt very old.

"Let's see," I mused, deciding to ignore the man in gray's warnings about opening it. After all this, I wanted to see what the fuss was about. But after a moment, I found that the book wouldn't open. It was as though the cover and every single page had been glued together. "Just great," I grumbled. "Useless..."

I grumbled and set the book on the counter, feeling extremely disappointed. All that interest and excitement for nothing. After those people had both come in looking for it, I had half expected the book to be something like a first edition, signed copy of Lord of the Rings. But instead, it was a ruined book that wasn't good for anything, especially not reading.

After a few minutes of wallowing in my disappointment, I turned my attention back to the book I had been reading earlier. I had barely gone through one more chapter before the bell on the door started to ring again.

"Can I help you?" I asked, before I even saw who was there.

I looked up and realized that it was an old homeless man. Or at least I assumed that he was homeless since he seemed to fit nearly every bad stereotype about the homeless that I'd ever heard. He was dressed in clothes that could more accurately be described as rags, and he had a horrible stench about him as though he hadn't bathed in years. Then he looked at me and I saw his eyes...eyes which were wild and filled with insanity.

"Where's my book?" he suddenly demanded, spittle flying from his mouth, "Give me my book..."

Then he saw the book on the counter and lunged for it. "Hey," I snapped, moving faster and snatching it away.

"Give it to me," he spat out, drool dripping down his chin. "It's MINE! I want it!"

"Get out of here," I yelled, getting a bit scared. This guy was obviously crazy, and I didn't want any trouble with a crazy man, "Get out of here now or I'm calling the police..."

"Mine!" he shouted as he came at me like a rabid dog.

When the old man attacked me, I shoved him back as hard as I could. He staggered backwards and fell to the ground, though he immediately got back to his feet. He glared at me furiously, but slowly stepped back. His eyes darted to the book and I could see that he was thinking about coming after it again.

"I'm calling the police," I said, reaching for the phone.

The wild eyed old man glared at me some more, then in a strange sing-song tone, he called out some weird rhyme, "From dusk till dawn, thy form be gone. A busty wench you shall be...till you return my book to me..." And with that, he spat on the ground in front of me and turned to rush out the door.

"Weird," I gasped, setting the phone back down. "This day is getting way too weird..."

I stared at the book which was in such high demand, wondering why they all wanted it. A fairly normal looking guy, a teenage girl, and now some crazy old homeless man... What would make such different people all want a book that I couldn't even open?

After a minute, I decided that I'd had enough of the weirdness for one day. I didn't care if Mr. Birch liked it or not, but I was shutting the store up early and heading home. There was only so much that a guy could take.

Several hours later, I was back home in my small apartment, trying to relax but unable to stop thinking about the strange book and the people who were after it. I would have given the book a thorough examination if I'd been able, but I'd left it back at the shop so that wasn't an option.

"Maybe I should have brought it home with me," I thought aloud, suddenly paranoid that one of those people might break into the store and steal it. At the same time, I realized that Mr. Birch would definitely NOT be happy if I'd gone home with a possibly rare and expensive book.

I sighed and looked out the window, seeing that it was just beginning to get dark. I don't know why, but that realization sent a strange chill through my spine. For some strange reason, the fact that the sun was setting seemed more important.

"Great," I groaned as I got to my feet, "On top of everything else, I'm losing my mind..."

Just then, I suddenly felt a wave of dizziness rush over me. It felt as though the whole world was suddenly ripped out from under me and I was left afloat in a strange limbo. This state of being only lasted for a moment before reality snapped back in place, but it felt as though it were much longer.

"Holy shit," I gasped out, immediately realizing that something had changed...something important. My whole body felt different...radically different.

I looked down at myself and felt my heart jump into my throat. My eyes went wide in horror as I saw that my entire body had been transformed in impossible ways. A single glance was enough to reveal that my body wasn't my body... It was as though I had suddenly become someone else. Someone who was obviously female at that.

"Impossible," I whispered in stunned confusion.

For a moment, I just stood there motionless, continuing to stare down at myself. I was completely and totally naked, with every stitch of my clothing having vanished during the strange reality shift. And since I was naked, I could see my altered body in complete and total clarity. It was a female body, very female and very sexy looking.

"Oh shit," I gulped, turning and rushing to the bathroom in order to see myself in the mirror.

Even before I saw the mirror, I realized that I was shorter than normal as well. Everything I saw looked several inches higher than was normal. I was too frantic to give it much thought, but a part of me realized that I was now about 5 foot 8.

Then I stared into the bathroom mirror and froze, my eyes going wide in disbelief as I soaked in every detail of my sudden transformation. The woman who stared back from the mirror was very sexy looking, with long, platinum blond hair, big blue eyes, pouty lips, and a killer body with big boobs.

"I look like some kind of stripper," I gasped.

No sooner had those words left my mouth when I felt another strange sensation. The odd vertigo hit me again and I suddenly found myself back to my old height, but definitely not back to my old body. A quick glance was enough to reveal that I was still the hot looking babe that I had been a moment before. The only difference was that I was now wearing clothes, including a pair of stiletto heeled shoes, a miniskirt and a shirt that revealed a decent amount of cleavage.

"What the hell?" I gasped, staring at my sexy outfit and then realizing that I now had makeup on as well as polish on my perfectly manicured nails.

Then I noticed one other thing. My glasses had vanished along with my normal clothes, yet I could see perfectly fine. I could see with perfect clarity.

I gulped, wondering what the hell was happening to me. Guys didn't just transform into sexy babes, at least not in the real world. Perhaps I was dreaming. Maybe everything that was going on was nothing more than some strange dream, even if it was the most twisted dream that I'd ever had.

"Feels too real to be a dream," I mused, cupping my breasts, which sure seemed to be a real part of my body. My hand slipped up my skirt and felt the empty space between my legs, which also felt perfectly real. "Definitely too real..."

After a minute, I let out a sigh and turned away from the mirror, too confused by what was going on to think clearly. I left the bathroom and walked back to the living room, trying to make some sense of what was going on.

"It has to be the book," I suddenly realized, thinking about the other strange things that had been happening during the day. It had to be due to the book, or one of those three people who'd been after it. "The old guy..."

I felt a faint chill run down my spine as I thought about the crazy old homeless man. Somehow, I knew that he was behind this. He had to be. I wasn't sure why, but I was sure that it had something to do with that weird nonsense he'd yelled at me before running out of the store.

"If only I could remember what he'd been babbling," I grimaced, wishing that I'd actually paid a bit more attention to his rant.

I frowned and paced back and forth across my living room as I tried remembering something, anything about what the crazy old guy had been yelling. But all I could remember clearly was the way he kept yelling out 'mine' and 'give it to me.'

Then I froze, suddenly realizing that I'd been walking around my apartment for ten minutes in a pair of stiletto heeled shoes and I had barely even noticed it. I would have expected to lose my balance and fall flat on my face, but they felt comfortable and nearly as easy to walk in as a pair of tennis shoes.

"No weirder than suddenly turning into a girl," I frowned, shaking my head slightly at that. Then I sighed, "I need to get some fresh air."

After a minute, I left my apartment to take a walk and clear my head. I'd been feeling a little cramped in there for some reason so this was just what I needed. I frowned as I went down the sidewalk, my thoughts filled with the strange events of the day.

I hadn't gone very far when I noticed an old woman, standing by the door of an apartment building and glaring at me with a look of strong disapproval. When she saw that that I was looking back, she snorted, "How can you go out in public, dressed like that?"

"What?" I blinked, looking down at myself in confusion.

I was still wearing the same clothes that I had been earlier, and they weren't stained or anything, nor did they clash. They looked perfectly fine, and definitely sexy. It took me a moment though before it finally dawned on me that this was what she was upset about.

Suddenly, I froze, realizing something else. "Oh shit..."

"Such language," the old woman gasped, glaring at me even more.

"Fuck off," I glared at her and quickly walked away.

However, I didn't forget what I had just been thinking about. There I was, transformed into a sexy woman and dressed in revealing clothes, and I didn't feel the least bit embarrassed or uncomfortable to be out like that in public. Intellectually, I knew that I should be completely and totally mortified, but instead, all that jumped into my head was the thought, 'if you've got it, flaunt it." And I definitely had it.

"I'm walking around in high heels as though they were sneakers," I muttered to myself. "And now this... Whatever changed my body is also messing with my head..." And further evidence of that was the fact that I wasn't a lot more upset by all this.

I frowned slightly as I continued on my walk, quickly noticing the way that every man I passed was looking at me. I was quick to realize that normally I would have been horrified and humiliated by those looks, but as with the other things, I didn't feel bothered by this in the least. In fact, I found myself strutting a bit to draw even more attention.

Then one man in particular caught my attention by stepping right in front of me. He was in his mid to late thirties and obviously pretty drunk. He stared straight at my chest for a moment, then held out a twenty dollar bill and smirked, "I'll give you this if you show me your tits?"

I hesitated for only a moment, then on a sudden impulse, I lifted my shirt and flashed him a good look at my tits. His eyes nearly popped out of his head as he stared in disbelief, obviously not having seriously believed that I'd take him up on the offer.

"Thank you," I smirked to him as I snatched the money from his hand. Then I gave him a wink as I said, "It was a pleasure doing business with you..."

As I walked off, I was a little stunned by just how easy that had been. I had just earned twenty bucks, without any effort whatsoever. Normally I'd have to work for more than two hours in the book store for that kind of money.

"So quick and easy," I mused to myself, several thoughts beginning to stir in the back of my head.

Just then, almost as if a sign from God, I noticed it. There was a bar across the street with a sign in the window that proclaimed they were having a wet T-shirt contest, with a prize of two-hundred dollars. And it started in just half an hour. As soon as I saw that, I immediately recognized the possibilities. If I could get twenty dollars with no effort, why couldn't I get two-hundred? It made perfect sense.

I grinned and walked into the bar, announcing to the bartender, "I want to enter the contest."

"You'll need to wear this," he told me, handing me a white T-shirt with the bar's name and logo on it.

I looked around and noticed that there were already several women there in those T-shirts, and several more heading back to the restroom to change into theirs. I didn't see the need to cram into the restroom with them, for something as simple as putting on a T-shirt, so I took off the shirt I was already wearing and changed, right there were I was at. There were a lot of gasps and wolf whistles, which just made me feel even more confident about my chances of winning.

"Don't you have any modesty?" a woman who was not dressed up for the contest asked me with a look of disapproval. Then she glared at a man who had been staring at me, and whom I assumed was her boyfriend or something.

I thought about her question for a moment and slowly responded, "I don't think so..."

With as calm and casual as I felt about my body and the idea of showing it off, I didn't think that I did have a sense of modesty anymore. The idea of being ashamed or embarrassed about my body felt almost ludicrous. I knew that this wasn't the way that I would have normally felt, but it was the way I felt right now.

Then came the contest. All the girls stood side by side, and some guy walked buy, pouring a pitcher of water down each of our front sides, waiting just long enough for the men in the audience to get a good look before moving on to the next. I stood there, shivering slightly as the water hit me and wet my front-side, but I stood there and stuck my chest out even further, smiling at the cheers and wolf whistles from all the men.

Everyone in the bar was staring at me, and to my surprise, I liked it. In fact, I loved it. I loved being the center of attention. Having all those men staring at me with lust in their eyes felt like the greatest of compliments and gave me a feeling of power at being able to cause that reaction. My body was even beginning to respond a little.

"I'm turning into some sort of exhibitionist," I mused to myself, hardly able to believe it...or how little I was bothered by that fact. But that was no different than anything else that had been happening to me.

A few minutes later, the man with the water pitcher grabbed my arm and held it up, incidentally making my tits jiggle a bit, "The winner..." There were a lot more cheers and whistles at that, and then he handed me an envelope full of my prize money.

"Thanks," I winked at him, loving the reaction that caused.

"Um...," the guy blinked for a moment, staring down at my tits before announcing to the rest of the bar, "Remember, next week we have the best breasts contest..." Then he looked at me and grinned, "I certainly hope you come to that one..."

I laughed at that, then went and changed back to my dry shirt before going to the bar to order a beer. I was still underage, but that didn't bother me, nor did it seem to bother the bartender who didn't even ask for any ID. I sat there and sipped a beer, thinking about the money I had won and all of the attention I was still getting. Nearly every guy in the place kept looking in my direction. And I liked it. I liked guys looking at me that way and I wanted them to look at me that way even more.

Just then, a man slid onto the stool next to me, staring at me for just a moment before saying, "Hi. I'm Jim."

"Ellie," I responded, giving him the feminine variation of my name. I smiled at him, finding it easy to do though I wasn't really attracted to him. Instead, it felt more like a game to me. I wanted to push his buttons, just to see if I could. "It's nice to meet you..."

I talked with Jim for a few minutes, pretending to be interested, just to see what reactions I could get from him. It was surprisingly fun, especially when I had his full attention. I almost felt as though he were wrapped around my fingers and that I could get him to do whatever I wanted. I even tried this out a little, getting him to buy me a drink, which I barely touched.

After a little while, Jim pulled out a cigarette and lit it, then paused to ask me, "You want one?"

"Sure," I responded, taking a cigarette from the offered pack, even though I didn't smoke and never had before. But at the moment, everything was different. I felt no urge for a cigarette, but at the same time, I had no instinctive revulsion either. Instead, I seemed to instinctively know that I could enjoy a cigarette or easily go without, with equal ease.

Once I lit my cigarette, I took a long drag and blew the smoke out to the side, musing at just how different EVERYTHING was compared to normal. I had been paying careful attention to my thoughts and feelings, and had become quite aware of just how different they were from what they SHOULD be. All of my inhibitions seemed to be gone, and it was as though my entire personality had been rewritten. Perhaps it had been. But at the moment, I didn't feel particularly worried about it.

A few minutes later, I snubbed out what was left of my cigarette and told Jim, "I've got to get going. My husband will be really worried about me."

"Husband?" he gasped in surprise, his eyes going to my hand which had no wedding ring.

"I take my ring off so that I can have some fun," I explained with a gentle smile, laughing at the look of heartbreak. "But if I'm not home by the time he gets off duty, he'll be pretty worried..."

"Off duty?" Jim blinked in surprise.

"He's a cop," I lied, earning a gulp from Jim, who had obviously thought I would be taking him home at the end of the night. It was actually kind of fun to leave him disappointed with just a few words, though I did my best to look apologetic. "Maybe we'll run into each other again..."

I smiled as I walked out of the bar, feeling quite satisfied with myself. I'd been able to show off, beat the shirts off of the other girls in the contest, and win two-hundred bucks on top of it all. It had definitely been a worthwhile trip to the bar. But I wasn't feeling quite ready to go back home yet. In fact, I was in the mood for a little more excitement.

After this, I found my way to a dance club, where I spent several hours dancing and flirting with the guys. As with Jim, I wasn't really interested in them, only in the attention they gave me. I craved those looks of lust, and the way the nearly worshipped me with their eyes. It was a glorious feeling that I didn't think I'd ever get enough of.

Eventually though, I grew tired and went home, getting through the door about 3 AM. I immediately sat down on my couch and started to laugh at just how fun and exciting my night had been. It had been unlike any night in my life.

"I might need to get a taser or pepper spray though," I thought aloud, remembering a few guys whose attention I could easily do without. They had made me a bit nervous and I knew that it wouldn't hurt to be prepared.

Then another thought suddenly struck me. I'd been turned into a hot babe, then ran around like that for most of the night, and I still hadn't seen what I looked like without my clothes. I would definitely have to change that.

I started off with the idea of just tearing off my clothes and taking a look, but then I had an idea which seemed much more fun. I stood in the middle of the living room and began to sway my body, pretending that I was listening to music and slowly stripping off my clothes. Admittedly, I didn't have on a whole lot of clothes, but it made getting undressed a whole lot more exciting.

"Oh yeah," I slipped a finger in my mouth and sucked it before I pulled it back out, feeling myself getting more and more excited as I imagined that I was actually stripping on front of an audience.

Once I had removed all of my clothes, except for my stiletto heeled shoes, I continued to dance around my living room for another few minutes. I was feeling pretty damn sexy when I did it, and when I stopped, I laughed at the sight of my clothes. My shirt, which had been casually tossed to the invisible audience, now hung over my TV, while my skirt draped the back of my couch.

"Damn hot," I mused as I looked myself over, definitely feeling extremely excited.

I paused for a moment, knowing that I should be horrified and worried about getting back to normal, yet that wasn't what I was feeling right now. Instead, I shrugged off all of the worries and sat back on my couch, one hand snaked between my legs and the other grabbing one of my generous breasts. God it felt good, and by the time I was done with my finger fuck session, it felt even better.

Eventually, I had fallen asleep on the couch with a deep smile of satisfaction. And that was where I was when I suddenly awoke to the sensation of reality twisting around on me again. It was exactly the same as when I had transformed the night before, and powerful enough to tear me out of a decent sleep.

"What the...?" I jumped to my feet, surprised to realize that I felt fully awake and refreshed. I felt as though I'd had a full night's sleep, though from the sunrise peeking through my window, it had obviously only been a couple hours.

Then I realized that I had transformed back into my normal self again. I had my old, male body back, with my glasses once again perched on my nose. Even the clothes that I had been wearing when I changed had all returned to me. And at the same time, all traces of the woman that I had been were gone. Even the clothes, which had been scattered about my living room, were nowhere in sight.

I stood there for a moment, feeling stunned and shaken. For a moment, I held onto the thought that perhaps everything that had happened to me yesterday and the night before was some kind of dream. But I knew that this wasn't the case. It had been far too real to be some sort of dream.

"I'm me again," I sighed, staring down at myself with a feeling of intense relief. "Thank God..."

--------------------

"I should have called in sick," I grumbled as I opened the book store for the day. "Mr. Birch would have understood... Well...maybe not." I sighed at that, knowing that he would have been pissed if he found out that I'd gone home early yesterday and then called in sick today. After all, I can't sell books for him if the store isn't open.

There was another reason that I couldn't have called in sick either. A more important reason. The book. I had to look at the strange book that was behind all of the strangeness again. Maybe I could make some sense of it now, or perhaps just get lucky and find some clue as to what was going on.

"Guys don't just turn into girls," I muttered, blushing as I thought about all that I'd done as a girl. I couldn't believe that I'd acted like some sort of sexy, wild, party girl. Everything that I'd done was so...embarrassing. "That kind of stuff just doesn't happen..."

I frowned and tried to remain calm and patient as I opened up the store. But when I looked around the store, I was surprised to find that a stack of books that behind the counter had been knocked over and were scattered on the floor. I knew damn well that they hadn't been in that condition when I left.

"The book," I gasped.

I quickly looked under the counter where I'd left the strange book, but it was gone. And the book wasn't the only thing missing. The money box was missing as well.

"We've been robbed," I gasped in horror.

My first thought was to call the police, but I held back. There was no sign that the store had actually been broken into. None of the windows were broken and the door had been locked when I'd arrived. If I called to report that, they'd be pretty suspicious...of me. And then there was the book. How could I possibly explain that to them?

"Those guys from yesterday," I grimaced. "It has to be one of them."

I quickly grabbed for the phone and called Mr. Birch, knowing that I had to tell him. I would have to tell him about those people yesterday, the weird book...and then explain why I hadn't told him about it all yesterday. He was going to be pissed. Unfortunately, the phone rang but he never picked up.

"Damn," I spat out, knowing that I would have to keep trying until I could get through. He'd want to know about this. I was just thankful that the money box only held about seventy bucks and that there was enough small change under the register to run most purchases...as long as no one needed a lot of change.

For most of the day, I worked the counter as normal, selling used books to the occasional customer who came through. I kept trying to call Mr. Birch, but was still unable to get through. That worried me more and more each time I failed.

I was pretty much back in my normal routine when the man in gray returned. He came straight to the counter and said, "I have reason to believe that the book I am looking for has arrived..." Then he froze and stared at me, his expression suddenly turning grimmer. "You've been cursed."

"What?" I blinked in surprise, taking an instinctive step back.

"Someone placed a curse on you," he said with a scowl. "Who did this?"

I gulped, feeling nervous but telling him, "I...I think it was a crazy homeless guy..."

His expression hardened even further. "Him." There was a lot of bitterness in that single word. "I did not think he was so close to it..."

"You know him?" I gulped, feeling confused by all this.

"I know of him," the man in gray told me with a scowl. Then he demanded, "Did you give him the book?"

"No," I squeaked out, cringing back, suddenly afraid of what this guy might do to me. "Who are you people?" I demanded, trying to keep from cowering, "Why are you all after this book?"

He stared at me for a moment and then nodded slightly. He slowly removed his hat, his expression softening a bit as he did so. "This is why I hate magic... People like you keep getting caught in the crossfire." Then he shook his head, "I believe you deserve to know what you are involved in."

I stared at him in surprise, not having expected that kind of a response. He didn't seem at all threatening anymore, just tired and even sad. He looked thoughtful, perhaps trying to decide what he could tell me.

"My name is Joshua," he started, scowling as he did so, "and I am trying to keep that book out of the wrong hands. Have you ever heard of the Necronomicon?"

I just nodded at that, "In the movies..."

Joshua nodded slightly, "This book is called the Book of Madness, and it is quite similar to the Necronomicon. It was written by one of the elder gods, and has a fearsome reputation. It is said that whomever reads from the Book of Madness will be driven insane. Fortunately, it can normally be opened only by those with magic talent."

"Then why do you all want it?" I asked skeptically. "And who the hell is that homeless guy?"

"He is...was once a powerful sorcerer," Joshua explained, "He specialized in the creation of powerful curses, using them to gain more power and destroy any who crossed him. Then he made a deal with a goddess, the details of which I do not fully know. As part of the deal, she was to give him the most powerful book of magic in her possession. I believe that he did not realize this was the Book of Madness until it was too late... He read from the book and it shattered his mind, leaving him broken and twisted. Now he wanders about, using what remains of his power for petty revenge."

I stared at Joshua, hardly able to believe what I was hearing. This was like something from an H.P. Lovecraft or Steven King story. And suddenly, I was very thankful that I'd never been able to actually open the book.

"You said that he had the book?" I asked, trying to understand what was going on, "And why would he want it back if it made him insane?"

"It is not easy for the mad to keep anything," Joshua responded slowly. "But he has been searching for the book since losing it. I am not certain of his reasons as it is difficult to guess the motivations of the mad, but he is quite obsessed with reclaiming it. And this is something that I dare not let him do. The Book of Madness is extremely dangerous, and in the wrong hands, I believe that it could spread a plague of insanity across the world."

"Oh shit," I gasped, suddenly understanding why it was so powerful. "It's like a weapon of mass destruction."

Joshua merely nodded at that. "My goal is to bury the book, to hide it away so that it can never be read again. It is far too dangerous."

"I don't have it," I told Joshua quietly. "I found it after you left yesterday... The crazy guy tried taking it, and when I wouldn't give it to him, he started spouting a bunch of weird stuff. He didn't get it though. At least not last night. I left the book here in the store, but when I got here this morning, it was gone."

"Gone?" Joshua gasped, a look of fear passing across his face. "Damn."

"At least I don't have to worry about that curse anymore," I gave him a weak smile. "It wore off this morning..."

Joshua stared at me intently, scowling as he did so. "No... The curse remains. What is it? How were you cursed?"

"Um...," I blushed brightly, embarrassed to think about it. "He turned me into a girl."

"He has become fond of that since going insane," Joshua frowned. "But your curse is still present... Here...let me see what the curse is..."

For a moment, Joshua just muttered some strange sounding words, then he held out his hand. Suddenly, I heard the crazy old man's voice, coming out of thin air. It was like a recording of the rhyming nonsense that he'd been spouting at me yesterday. "From dusk till dawn thy form be gone. A busty wench you shall be till you return my book to me"

Joshua's expression became grimmer as he listened to that. "The curse is more complicated than you realize... You are cursed to change again, and to do so every night at sunset, only to return to normal at sunrise."

"WHAT?" I gasped, horrified at the realization.

"But there is even more," Joshua mused quietly, looking as me as if seeing something that I couldn't. "There is another, more subtle part of the curse..." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then asked, "After you changed last night...what was your first impression? What was your first thought about how you looked?"

"I thought that I looked like a stripper," I blushed in remembrance.

"And afterwards," he asked, "Did you start thinking and behaving like a stripper might?"

"Um...I guess," I gulped, unable to bring myself to look at him. It was way too embarrassing. "I was acting like some kind of exhibitionist or something..."

Joshua nodded. "The primary curse transforms you into a busty woman between sunset and sunrise. The second part of the curse triggered at your first impression of your transformed self. It took your own thoughts and turned them against you, effectively making you think and act like a stripper...or at least how you think a stripper would."

"WHAT?" I gasped, "That's what made me act like that last night? Because I thought I looked like a stripper?"

"I'm afraid so," Joshua sighed, "But it could have been even worse."

"How?" I snorted.

"Well," he mused, "If you had thought that you looked like some sort of bimbo, you would have acted like a bimbo. Or you could have thought you looked like a slut, or a porn star." I paled as he mentioned each of these. "And if you had thought that you looked like a prostitute...the idea of having sex for money would have suddenly seemed very reasonable."

"Oh," I gulped, still not happy about it but agreeing that it could have been even worse.

"I fear that it is beyond my power to break your curse," Joshua told me with a scowl. But there was something in his expression that seemed to indicate he was holding something back. There was something he wasn't telling me.

"Then how am I supposed to get rid of this curse?" I demanded, more than a little upset by the thought of turning into some kind of stripper every night for the rest of my life.

I grimaced and clenched my fists in frustration. But something tugged on the back of my thoughts and I suddenly realized what it was. When the homeless guy had cursed me, he'd said 'A busty wench you shall be till you return my book to me.' He'd told me how to break the curse right there. All I had to do was give him the book. But as soon as I realized this, Joshua must have seen it on my face because his expression turned even more grim.

"I will help you however I can," Joshua told me, "But I cannot allow you to give him the Book of Madness. It is far too dangerous..."

"Then maybe that girl will help me," I responded bitterly, feeling angry at both Joshua and myself. He said that he wanted to help me, then at the same time, he tells me that he will try stopping me from getting cured. And at the same time, I was angry at myself for being willing to give this book to the crazy guy if it would cure me.

"What girl?" Joshua demanded, his eyes narrowing.

"I don't know," I grumbled, "She was a teenager with blond hair... She came in, asking about the book, just after you did."

"Damn," Joshua spat as he turned for the door. "If she's involved, then things just got a lot more complicated."

"What do you mean?" I asked as Joshua left the shop, "Who is she?" But there was no answer as Joshua was already gone.

"Just great," I groaned, shaking my head and wondering what I'd ever done to deserve this. I don't know what it was, but it must have been pretty bad to get me mixed up in some sort of demonic book and all these weirdoes. "Just great."

I had no idea what to do after this, so I just thought about everything that Joshua had told me while I watched the book store. I kept trying to call Mr. Birch, but it did no good. So I remained at the store for the rest of my shift, growing more and more worried as I did so. Somehow, I would have to find that book... It might be the only way that I could break that curse.

When work was finally over several hours later, I went home as fast as I could. I thought about calling my mom and dad so I could tell them about what I had somehow gotten involved in, and about the curse that I found myself with, but I didn't dare. At best, they'd think I was playing some kind of joke on them, and at worst, they'd think I was completely and totally insane. Somehow, I couldn't see any good coming from going to them for help.

So there I was, sitting in my living room and waiting for sunset. I didn't even need the clock to tell me how close it was. Somehow, I could feel it inside of me, like some sort of tension that built as that time drew near.

"Please be wrong," I prayed, thinking about Joshua and how he'd told me the curse was still there. "Maybe he was wrong... Maybe it was only a one night thing..." However, I didn't really believe that for a moment.

The sunset came and I felt the twisting of reality again. I gasped as the sensations ripped through me, leaving my whole body and being transformed once again. After a moment, I looked down at myself, seeing that I was the same woman that I had been last night. The only difference was my clothes. This time I was wearing a pair of black, stiletto heeled shoes, a pair of tight leopard print pants, and a black crop top T-shirt with a picture of a bright red lip print right across the front.

I took a deep breath and tried something that I had been thinking about since my conversation with Joshua. "I look like some kind of super genius..." Unfortunately, it didn't work. I didn't feel any changes, and when I closed my eyes, I still got a 'warm fuzzy' from thinking about showing off in front of men. "I guess it doesn't reset every night... It looks like I will keep turning into a stripper..." At the moment though, that thought didn't really bother me all that much. All I could think of was, "And what's wrong with that?"

After a minute, I went to the bathroom and checked myself out in the mirror, feeling quite pleased by what I saw. There was no doubt that I was definitely one hot looking, sexy babe. And I had no doubt as to my ability to drive men wild with desire.

"That could be fun," I thought aloud.

I continued admiring myself in the mirror for a little longer, then decided to go out and have some fun. I smiled at that decision, already knowing exactly where I was going to go. My little talk with Joshua had given me the idea. And after calling a cab, I soon found myself at my destination.

"This should be interesting," I grinned as I went inside of the strip club. They were having an amateur night, so I thought that it would be the perfect time for me to show off and see if I really had what it took. I was getting excited just thinking about it.

Once I signed up to go on stage, I sat around and waited while several other women went up and showed of what they could do. Most of the guys in the club didn't seem too impressed by these girls, though they obviously enjoyed watching anyway. I just watched with a critical eye, making mental notes as to what they were doing and what I might do instead. And then it was my turn.

I went up on the stage, surprised to realize that I didn't feel the least bit nervous. Instead, I felt confident, and filled with a mixture of excitement and anticipation. And as soon as the music they were playing hit me, I began to sway and move. The movements came instinctively, without much conscious thought or effort, but I knew that they oozed with sexiness. Every pair of eyes was locked on me and I relished the attention, putting that much more energy into my dancing.

"Now for the spice," I mused to myself as I slipped out of my shirt and tossed it to the side.

I moved to the pole that was in the center of the stage and stretched my body along it, feeling the raw hunger that it drew from the audience. The men out there wanted me, which only excited me even further. I smiled at that, blew a kiss out into the audience and continued with my routine, even though I was making it up on the spot.

While I was dancing, money seemed to appear on the stage, as if by magic. There were lots of ones and fives, but even a few twenties. And more money was appearing the longer I danced.

When my time on the stage was done, I quickly retrieved my discarded clothes as well as the money which had been left for me. Then to show my appreciation, I blew the audience a kiss and walked off stage as sexily as I could, feeling an incredible satisfaction.

"That was not the work of an amateur," a sexy blond waitress told me after I'd put my clothes back on and had taken a seat in the audience.

"Actually, it was the first time that I'd ever danced in front of an audience," I gave her a sweet grin, thinking about how much I'd enjoyed just dancing for myself last night. This was MUCH better.

"Yeah, right," she snorted skeptically. "Still, you were a lot better than most of our professionals..."

"Really?" I grinned, feeling rather smug at her statement. It looked as though my ability to dance had come along with the ability to walk in high heels.

"You looked like you were really having an orgasm out there," she grinned.

"Actually," I grinned back, "I think I was... I'm so wet right now, I'm dripping..."

Once the waitress was gone, I just leaned back and watched the show, feeling quite pleased with the knowledge that I was much better than the current dancer or any of the others that I'd watched. And since the waitress had said I was even better than most of the professionals as well, my ego was feeling quite happy.

But it wasn't really the confirmation that I was good which so filled me with satisfaction. I had enjoyed...absolutely LOVED the dancing. It had been so thrilling and exciting. I had easily taken all of their glorious attention, and even a good bit of their money. It had all been so easy...and so very fulfilling. It had even left me sexually excited and hungry for more.

Suddenly, I had an epiphany. This was what I had been made for. This was the very destination that the curse had been guiding me to. I was filled with a sense of purpose and meaning. This was the life to which I now belonged.

--------------------

"Why me?" I pounded my head against the book store counter, wondering yet again what I had ever done to deserve this. "I can't believe I did that last night..."

I had spent most of last night, and the early part of the morning, at the strip club, dancing on stage for the men and even giving lap dances. I couldn't believe just how much I had gotten into it, or just how excited I had been by all that sexual attention. I felt as though I were some kind of drug addict and that those lusty stares were my drug of choice. Or at least that was what it had been like before I changed back to myself this morning.

"It's like I'm some sort of Jeckyll and Hyde," I groaned, knowing that it had all seemed so perfectly reasonable the night before. I absolutely enjoyed myself and just about everything that I did last night, without feeling the slightest bit of guilt or shame...until I changed back at sunrise.

My only consolations to my embarrassing behavior the night before had been the fact that I had come home with a good bit of money. I was just thankful that the money was the only thing I'd brought home. I had been so horny by the time I left, that I was half surprised I hadn't brought one of those guys back home with me. Fortunately, when I was Ellie, I wasn't attracted to the men, only the attention and money that they paid me.

"Some of those girls at the club were pretty nice though," I grinned in remembrance. At least I'd remained myself enough to recognize that. I had even been tempted to try taking one of them home. The only thing that had stopped me had been the thought of what might happen if we spent a night making hot, lesbian love, only to have me turn back to normal in the morning. "That would have taken some explaining..."

I frowned and looked under the counter, knowing that I wouldn't find anything but looking anyway. There was no sign of where the Book of Madness had gone, which was NOT a good thing. I had no idea where to find it, and unless I did, I couldn't give it to that crazy old guy and get this curse broken. For all I knew, he might have been the one who broke into the shop and stole the book.

"At least I'm just a tease and not a total slut," I muttered.

Just then, the bell above the door began to ring. I nearly jumped, half afraid that it might be one of those people again. I wasn't really afraid of Joshua anymore, but those other two... I knew first-hand what that crazy guy could do, and even though the cute girl had looked harmless, if Joshua was that wary if her, I had no doubt that I should be too.

But to my relief, it was Mr. Birch who entered the store. He paused for a moment to look around with a careful eye, obviously trying to see if I'd done anything noticeable to screw up the store. Then he nodded faintly before coming over to me.

"I've been trying to call you for the last two days," I blurted out, wondering how I was going to tell him about the robbery. Would he even believe me about the book?

"I've been staying with my daughter to help with my grandchildren while her husband is away on business," Mr. Birch responded with a frown. "Why were you trying to call me? What's wrong?" He looked worried.

"I think we had a break-in," I admitted, unable to bring myself to look at him.

Mr. Birch stared at me for a moment, then chuckled, "Do you mean the money box?"

"What?" I blinked in surprise, "Yeah..."

"I stopped by the other night and picked it up," he responded with a reassuring smile. "I normally just take the money and leave the box, but I was in too much of a hurry to count it all here... I probably should have left you a note to explain. I apologize for needlessly worrying you."

I stared at Mr. Birch in relief, then remembered the reason that I had really been worried about the break-in. "There was a book..."

"Ah yes," he rubbed his chin, "The old damaged one that you left for me... I left it with a specialist to see if he could unstick the pages...and if he could appraise it."

"Thank God," I let out a sigh of relief. Then at Mr. Birch's confused look, I scrambled for an explanation, "Someone came by saying that it was an old family journal that had accidentally been donated..."

"Ah yes," Mr. Birch nodded, "A family heirloom can be quite important. I wondered if it might be something of the nature since it had no title."

After I had convinced Mr. Birch to tell me where the person he sent it to was, and to give me the rest of the day off, I rushed from the shop. I hurried to the other side of the city as fast as I could, my heart racing as I thought of the prize. In just a short while, I would have the Book of Madness, and I could trade it to the crazy old man for my cure.

Of course, I felt a surge of guilt when I thought about what the Book of Madness could do. I didn't want to be any part of causing trouble or driving other people insane. But I didn't have any proof that this could really happen. All I had was a story from some guy whom I wasn't sure I could trust. And I wasn't about to risk my own future on something that intangible.

When I finally arrived at O'Keef's Rare Books, I stood outside and stared at the front for a moment. It was a fancier book store than the one I worked at and the sign said that they also did book repairs and appraisals. I smiled at the sight and started to open the door, until I noticed a reflection in the window.

"Joshua," I gasped, snapping around to see him coming up behind me. "You followed me..."

"I am sorry," he frowned, "But I don't have a choice. I regret having to take away your cure, but the fate of the world is at stake."

"Melodramatic?" I muttered as he went inside ahead of me.

I quickly followed behind Joshua, hoping that I could get the book instead. After all, I do work for the man who gave it to Mr. O'Keef. However, I was pretty damn worried. Joshua wasn't exactly a normal guy.

Once inside, I was met with a bit of a surprise. When Mr. Birch had told me that Mr. O'Keef had the book, I had expected him to be an old man with thick glasses. But the real Mr. O'Keef turned out to only be in his early forties.

"I am looking for a book, bound in black leather and without any writing on the outside," Joshua told him.

"Mr. Birch brought it here," I added, trying to get the upper hand. "He wanted me to pick it up for him..."

"I know that book," Mr. O'Keef nodded, "But I don't have it here anymore..."

"WHAT?" Joshua and I both gasped as one.

Mr. O'Keef suddenly had a strange, dreamy expression on his face. "I gave it to the pretty blonde girl..."

"You gave it to a blond girl?" Joshua gasped, as though he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Why...?"

"She asked me to give it to her," Mr. O'Keef responded with a weird smile, acting if that was the most natural thing in the world.

"He's been bespelled," Joshua muttered, turning around to leave the shop. I hesitated a moment, the followed behind him, wanting some answers that only he could give. He paused at the door to snap his fingers, which caused Mr. O'Keef to blink and snap out of whatever spell he was under.

"What's going on?" I demanded.

"This is not good," Joshua shook his head. "If she has the book, there is no chance of getting it back..."

"WHAT?" I gasped, staring at Joshua in horror, "Who the hell is she?"

Joshua paused to look at me for a moment before slowly answering, "She's the goddess who gave the Book of Madness to your homeless friend in the first place. Her name is Chiff. Miss Chiff."

I stared at Joshua in disbelief, sure that he had to be kidding me. A goddess named Miss Chiff? That had to be some kind of joke. And I'd seen the girl when she came into my book store, and she certainly didn't strike me as much other than a fourteen-year-old girl.

"Appearances can be deceiving," Joshua told me, as though guessing my thoughts. "For her especially."

"But...," I blinked, trying to make sense of this.

"If she has the book," he told me with a sad expression, "there is no hope of you finding it again. Even I will never be able to find it now unless she lets me."

"But if I can't find the book," I whispered.

"Then your curse can't be broken," Joshua finished for me. "I am truly sorry," he told me, sounding sincere. "I would break it if I could, but that is beyond my power."

"Oh," I gulped weakly, nearly shaking from what this all meant.

"I can help you though," he added with a thoughtful expression.

"Really?" I asked with a surge of hope, which immediately turned to skepticism. "How?"

Joshua stared at me for a moment, then said, "I can't break the primary curse...but I believe I can remove the second part.

"What...what exactly does that mean?" I asked, already having an idea but wanting more clarity.

"I can remove the part of your curse which makes you behave like a stripper," Joshua explained. "Your mind will be free and clear... Of course, this also means that when you change, you will no longer have new clothes appearing for your body."

"Wow," I whispered, thinking about what this would mean. I wouldn't get all of those weird thoughts and feelings anymore... I seriously considered this for a minute or so before quietly responding, "No thank you..."

"What?" Joshua blinked in surprise, obviously not believing that I'd just turned down his offer.

Taking a deep breath, I slowly told him, "Without that part, whenever I change, I'd be extremely awkward and uncomfortable in my body, as well as so embarrassed that I wouldn't be able to even leave my house. As long as I have that part, I don't feel uncomfortable or embarrassed at all. I guess it lets me handle it. And honestly, I'm trying to save up money so I can afford college... And strippers make a lot of money..." I blushed brightly as I admitted this.

"Are you sure?" Joshua asked me, looking a little confused.

I just nodded at that, embarrassed by my choice but knowing that it was the right one. As long as I kept that...mindset when I changed, I wouldn't feel completely uncomfortable and humiliated every night. I would be able to make enough money for school. And though I was even more embarrassed by my last reason, I had to admit, even if only to myself, that I sort of liked being Ellie. When I was her...I felt so free and uninhibited. Everything was so much more exciting. I might regret what I'd done as her in the morning, but while I was her...I loved every minute of it.

Joshua looked as though he were about to say something more, when suddenly he froze. He pulled a small hand mirror out of his pocket and stared at for a minute, his expression turning more and more grim with every second. Finally he put it back into his pocket with an angry expression.

"I'm afraid that I must be going," he told me in a clipped tone. "Our homeless friend cursed a child this morning, and I just learned of a man who used a lust potion on his lesbian neighbor, turning her into his sex slave."

"What?" I gasped in surprise.

Joshua sighed, suddenly looking very sad and tired again. "I only hope that I'm able to help them. If I can't break the potion's effects, I may have to trade their bodies to free her..."
I stared at Joshua with a nervousness, suddenly wondering just what he was capable of. If he could actually make people trade bodies... It was a scary thought.

"I don't fully understand your choice, though I wish you luck." Joshua told me. Then he turned and slowly walked away, sighing, "I hate magic... Nothing good ever comes of it..."

For a minute, I just remained where I was, silently watching Joshua walk away. I couldn't help but wondering about him, about who he was, where he came from and how it was that he did what he did. And at the same time, I couldn't help but respecting him. He actually seemed to be helping people, or at least trying to, so I silently wished him luck.

Then I looked at my watch, my heart jumped slightly as I did so, in spite of the fact that I still had a few hours until sunset. I had a strange mixture of nervousness and excitement as I thought about what would happen. A part of me wondered if I'd made the right choice, though I knew it was too late to worry about that now. If I couldn't be cured entirely, I might as well keep the parts that could make my life easier. I had made my choice, and now it was up to me to live with it.

********************

The room was large and well lit, with a massive mirror that covered almost the entirety of one wall. Images flashed across its perfect, unblemished surface, almost as though it were a TV screen. A state of the art DVD player and entertainment center were set up next to the mirror, though they were not plugged in or attached in any physical way.

Other walls were decorated with a strange mixture of styles and no apparent theme. A masterpiece from Picasso, which had not been seen since the artist's death, hung beside a dart board and a poster of Alfred E Neuman. A book shelf contained manuals for Unix and Windows, along with the skull of some unknown creature and vials of steaming green slime.

Seven balls of colored light floated about the room, some hovering in place while others darted about, seeming to play tag with each other. A creature, which looked like a pink fox was curled up on the ceiling in a nap, completely unconcerned with the fact that it was violating the laws of gravity.

Then in the middle of the room was a pretty blonde girl, who looked no older than 14, leaning back in a comfortable recliner and facing the magic mirror, though she paid little attention to it. Instead, she clutched a black leather book in her hand and stroked it possessively.

Miss Chiff let out a light laugh and swept her hair back, revealing her long pointed ears. "I finally got it back..."

"Is THAT it?" asked the little green haired pixie who hovered in the air above her. "Is that the Book of Madness?"

"Yep," Chiff grinned, looking up at her pixie companion Pip, "I just can't believe that idiot I lent it to lost it... Of course, he was pretty addlebrained at the time." She snickered at that and opened the book, reading over one of the pages and then giggling.

"What are you doing to do with it now?" Pip asked cautiously. "Are you gonna try slipping it to that old guy in the bath robe?"

Chiff thought about it for a moment, then shook her head. "No. He's too clever to be caught that way. Besides, I have a lot of admiration for his work."

Pip just stared at Chiff for a moment, then said, "I can't believe that you're so casual about reading from such a dangerous book of spells..."

"Spells?" Chiff blinked in surprise, "There ain't no spells in here."

"What?" Pip gasped, looking confused.

"Sure, the Book of Madness was written by the elder god Yaragolgoth," Chiff grinned, "But it isn't a spell book...or even a book of secrets. This is just where he'd written down a bunch of poetry and dirty limericks he'd come up with."

"WHAT?" Pip stared at Chiff in disbelief, unable to believe what she as hearing. "It's just a book of dirty limericks?"

"Well, not JUST," Chiff shrugged, "Yaragolgoth is an elder god and anything that comes from one of those guys is pretty damn powerful. Even bad poetry. So when one of those guys writes a bunch of stuff this bad, it's so twisted, so raunchy and so horrible that mortal minds just can't handle it..."

"So...what are you going to do with it?" Pip asked cautiously.

Chiff glanced at the book before shrugging, "I'll finish reading it, then put it back on my bookshelf."

And with that, Miss Chiff turned her full attention back to the book, continuing to read from where she left off. A faint smirk formed on the face of the goddess while her snickers and giggles could be heard throughout the room.

Pip stared at Chiff for a moment, being careful not to look upon the pages of the book. She might not be exactly mortal, but she had no wish to take any chances with something like the Book of Madness. Then she shook her head in disbelief and flew away, muttering in disgust, "All that trouble over a book of dirty limericks..."

THE END