Ring 4.4: Kellvin

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Ring 4.4:

Kellvin

Liam was waiting at the court by the time Rolf got there; they started playing right away. He reserved conversation for when they had a break, concentrating instead on the game. By the time they were exhausted, an hour had passed, and they had managed to get an even tie.

They sat down on a bench. “Whew. Man, you're better than I thought you'd be,” said Liam.
“..Yeah. You too,” said Rolf.

They sat in silence for a minute or two, each catching his own breath. Then Rolf said, “Hey, uh. I've been wondering about something..”

“Yeah? Wha'd that be?”
“Well, it's about Kevin. The stuff that's been going on, with his body changing and all. I figure you're around him a lot more than I am.”
“Yeah.”

“Do you think..I mean, he looks kind of like a girl these days. Doesn't he?”

“Hah! Directly to the point, huh?”
“I don't mean it as an insult, I mean..the way his changes make him look actually is kind of like a girl. Isn't it?”
Liam nodded. “Yep, you got it on the head there. We're pretty sure that's what's goin' on too. 'Specially since he told me yesterday he actually is a girl now.”

“Um..he is? Or, she is? Or..?!” said Rolf, looking flustered. “I-I mean..should you be telling me this? It seems kind of..”
“Nah,” said Liam, shaking his head and waving a hand. He was grinning, apparently enjoying Rolf's confusion. “She gave me permission to tell you an' Cole this mornin'. Pretty soon your whole school'll know about it. I mean heck, her chest's getting' kinda hard to hide, you know?”

“Well, okay. But, um. Is..is she okay with this? I mean, if there was some way Kevin could not have to be a girl for the rest of his..her..life, would--?”
“I dunno, man. That's a pretty personal question. She seems pretty okay with it right now, though.”

“So..if I ask her that..like..Monday afternoon. Is that okay with you?”
Liam shrugged. “Sure. I mean, as long as you ain't plannin' ta tease her with the idea and not be able to follow through on it.”

“I don't know how it all works. But..I think we have something that could help.”

“For that, ya'd need some kinda magic, wouldn't ya?”

“Sure,” Rolf nodded.
“Are ya admitting to having some kinda magic, then?”
“I don't know..would that be a bad thing?”

“Nope,” said Liam, standing up. “Kev won't have much trouble believin' it either.”

“..Why not?”

“'Cause I'm magic, m'self. Don't feel like goin' into detail 'bout it now, though, I can explain it to all three of you guys later if ya like.”

“I think that would clear up some confusion, at least.”

“Sure, sure. For now, how 'bout another match, eh?”

Rolf stood up right away. “You're on.” Liam nodded, and walked back to the court.

After all this time alone with him..Liam was sure of it now. This was exactly what he thought he'd sensed before..the only question was when, and how, to break it to him. Not now, he decided at once. Not here. Not yet.

---

“Hah! No way.”
“Yes way! And then he was all like, 'You didn't win! Youuu cheated.' And I tell ya, if you haven't seen the look of stone cold righteous fury on Rolf's face..it's pretty terrifying when it makes sense, but it's just hilarious out of context.” Akio was hanging out Lauren again, out at the arcade. They weren't playing anything just now, instead leaning against one of the walls on the side and just talking. Really, they were waiting for the game they wanted to play to be open again. And since they'd already paid, nobody was going to kick them out for loitering or anything.

“But you really did win. Nobody ever said you couldn't set traps,” she said.

“That's what I said. 'Just because I'm being creative with water balloons, and you're not, doesn't make me a cheater.' And then Cole shot both of us with a hose.”

When Lauren finished laughing, she said, “They both seem like pretty cool guys, you know.”
“Sure. I mean, they are, once you've known 'em for a while.”
“It's too bad, really. A lot of the girls think he's kind of a jerk. I mean, he's cute, and on five or six different sports teams. He could have a date every Saturday for all of high school if he wanted, but he just shuts down anyone who even tries. I mean, I didn't think he was a jerk. I know what jerks act like, and he's different from that. I thought he was just shy or something.”

“Hmm, nah, he isn't shy. He's just focused. If he wants to do something, you know, he has to go in and do it all the way, no distractions.”

“...Say, have you ever wanted to be a girl?”
“Uh..” Akio just managed to hide the real source of his surprise under a layer of confusion at the question's sudden, random appearance.
“I mean, like, not forever. Just sort of, temporarily, to see what it's like.”

“Well, maybe it'd be fun or something..um..why?”

“I just wanted to know what you thought. I mean, anyone can describe what it's like, but it's not the same as actually being one for a little while, you know?”
“I guess so. I mean, I wouldn't know unless I'd actually turned into a girl at one point,” said Akio.

Lauren shrugged. “It was just something I thought of, is all. Sorry if I'm making you uncomfortable.”

“No, no, you're fine. Uh..just threw me off a little bit, is all. Wasn't expecting it. Yeah.”

“Well, to be honest, I actually started wondering about it after watching Kevin the last few days or so..uh, you know who that is, right?”
“Sure.”

“I thought he kinda looks like he might be turning into a girl. And it got me wondering, I mean, if it's possible for that to happen to him, what if something like that happened to me or..I dunno, one of my friends? Turning into a guy somehow. I think it'd kind of suck to have it forced on you, and permanent, though.”

“Sure. Or at least, it'd be really weird and awkward.”

“Mmhm. But yeah, that's where that came from. Oh, I think he's getting off now.”
“Is he? Good, my fingers are itching.”

---

Monday morning came along, and Kevin walked into school wearing clothes that weren't big and baggy for the first time in a while. It was just a t-shirt and jeans, both clothes he'd worn plenty before the last few weeks. But now it was rather hard to miss that the person wearing them bore little resemblance to Kevin, or any male, for that matter. The bright red, long hair framed a decidedly cute face; the shirt hung over a pair of unmistakeable breasts, now about average size for an adult; and the jeans hugged wide hips and hung a bit awkwardly loose between the legs.

She was blushing now and then, but spoke with only slight stutters or nervous pauses, and in an undisguised, lilting alto tone, explaining when asked that yes, this had actually happened. Kevin had somehow slowly turned into a girl. Many people had suspected it by now, but the conversation brought quite a bit of talk to the school. The faculty had been notified ahead of time, and while there was some talking between them, they kept the students busy with classes as usual.

After school, Kevin walked out of the building to find Rolf, Akio and Cole all waiting for her a few steps outside. “Hey,” said Rolf, “can we talk?”

“Sure,” she said, smiling, “what about?”
“Well..not here,” said Cole. “We kind of want to show you something, but it's still at my house, so we'll need to talk about it there.”

“Sure,” she said, nodding. “I don't have any plans this afternoon.”

“All right then, follow me,” said Akio, starting to walk immediately. The other two glanced at each other before following him, and Kevin fell in behind them.

---

I know, this one's pretty short compared to all the other parts. But what comes next really, really needed its own section, and it couldn't be jumped straight to without this setup. Not that all of this section is setup for that specifically, of course.