Ring 5.1: Clearing the Air

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Ring 5.1:

Clearing the Air

Liam leaned against the wall, sighing a quiet “Phfff..” This would be fun to watch, but he suspected it would get a little bit tedious for him personally. And waiting around beforehand was kind of boring. Maybe he shouldn't have run the whole way, and maybe he wouldn't have if he hadn't been convinced the next part would be so much more fun if he made it here first.

He didn't have to wait all that long. Pretty soon he could see four figures making a turn around another house and heading toward him, the guys looking pretty surprised.

Especially Cole. “Liam? Wh--. How did you--? Gh..”

“One question at a time oughta help ya,” he advised.

“Okay, what are you doing here?” said Cole.
“Waitin' for you guys. I'm sure ya know I don't hang out here all the time.”

“Well I should, considering this is my house.”

“Calm down, Cole, he probably knew to wait here 'cause he's magic,” said Akio.

“Nah. I just took an educated guess.”

“But how did you know where his house even is?” said Rolf.

Liam pointed at the mailbox, which had Cole's family name on it. “Knew it was 'round here somewhere. I just had to look a little bit.”

There was an awkward pause after that. Fortunately, he was an expert at ending those. “So, c'n we go in already? It's way too hot out here.”

“..Sure, fine.” Cole opened the door, and everyone spilled into the living room. On the way in, Kevin gave a small giggle. “You ran all the way here to do that, didn't you?”

Liam shrugged. “Maybe.” He remained standing, and so did Rolf; Kevin took a chair, and Akio and Cole opposite sides of the couch. “So, we're here 'cause you guys have somethin', huh?”

“Yes!” said Akio. “I'm sure you guys remember last Friday. I was a girl.”

“You told them it was you?” said Cole.

“No, of course not. Liam figured it out.”
“'Cause I'm magic.” He pointed a thumb at himself, leaning against a wall again.

Cole gave Liam a look for a few seconds. “..Would you stop saying it like that?”
“Like what?”
“You keep saying you're 'magic', but when you say it like that it sounds like you're claiming to somehow be the embodiment of all magic everywhere.”

“So what if I was?”
“I don't even have any reason to believe something like that exists. Could you just say you're magical or something?”
“Hm..nah. You c'n say it that way if ya want, though.”

“Guys, we're getting off track here,” said Akio. “Yeesh, I thought I was the one who ran off on tangents all the time..”

“That's because you are,” said Rolf.

“Whatever. Anyway. The way I did that was..” he held out a hand to Cole and started trying to grab something out of the air. “Was..” After waving it around for a few seconds, he turned toward him, glaring slightly. “Hey, what are you doing?”

“What do you mean, what am I doing?”
“That's your cue to give me the thing, so I can show it to everybody. Duh.”

“You'd just drop it again.” Cole held up the ring himself. “What he's trying to say is, we found this.”
“You mean, I found it and I bought it. With my money.”

“Yeah, that. Anyway, this is supposed to be a 'perfect disguise' ring. It literally turns a person into whatever they think of when they put it on...with maybe some limits we don't know about.”
“The first time, at least,” said Rolf.

Kevin looked like she was about to say something, but Liam looked at her and shook his head slightly.“Ya wanna demonstrate that?” he asked.

“Well, um,” said Cole, moving the ring back into the palm of his hand. “I should warn you we sorta didn't know it 'saved' a form like that, and also we weren't sure it actually worked the first time, so we kinda used the amazing power for something sort of silly.”

“Silly?” said Akio. “Free arcade night is serious business, man.”

“Yeah, that. So the 'disguises' the three of us have are all girls. Do you want to..?” Now he offered Akio the ring.
“Nah, you go ahead,” he said, waving.

Cole sighed, and put on the ring, waiting quietly for a few seconds until it glowed. “It does that to say you've decided what disguise to turn into,” he explained. “And you actually take the ring off to change.”

With that, he stood up, took off the ring, and immediately started visibly changing. His hair grew out and his face changed; his stomach drew in, his hips pushed out, and his arms and legs slimmed down. His shirt shrank up against a flat, slim inward curve of a stomach and his jeans' leggings pulled up to just above the thighs, the remainder pulling tight, particularly between Cole's legs. Then her chest burst out into the usual fair-sized breasts; the tight shirt seemed to stretch out with them, the collar opening down until it showed a little bit of cleavage, leaving Jenna in a girl's t-shirt and denim shorts.

As usual, she managed to hold on to the ring the whole time and remain pretty calm. “So..yeah,” she said, putting a hand behind her head. “Sometimes it doesn't go as fast as that..but this ring is pretty amazing, right?”

“Heh, I'll say,” said Liam. “Pretty complex enchantments goin' on with that. It probably wouldn't give ya powers if you tried to disguise yourself as a superhero or somethin', though.”

“Um..” Kevin looked at Liam, and this time he nodded. So she got up. “I think I should probably show you guys something, too..”

All eyes were on Kevin while she dug into her pocket and pulled out a ring, looking just as cheap-plastic as the one Jenna was holding, but of a slightly different shade. She quietly, shyly put it on, waited for it to glow, and then started to change..it was pretty slow, and the differences in the end result were relatively small: Her figure became more pronounced, the breasts especially growing out, and there were some more subtle changes to her limbs, skin and face that all made her look decidedly more feminine. Her clothes didn't change at all, or at least not the shirt and pants. After a minute or so of silence, the person standing in the room was unmistakeably Kell from the arcade.

“So..you were lying earlier about having some dream, I guess,” said Akio.

“Yep. I mean, I didn't really want to lie to you guys but I also didn't want to tell everyone all the details, either. I was pretty sure you'd do this at some point, and figured it would be a good, private place and time...”

“That's fine,” Rolf said, “but..so, wait, you actually wanted to turn into a girl?”

Kell shrugged. “Sure. Well, not exactly. I mean, the first time I used the ring I just wanted to turn into someone who was the opposite of me..in all the good ways, that is. But the ring interpreted 'opposite' to also mean..” She made a slight sweeping motion over her body. “..And taller, I guess. But I really liked being not totally paralyzed by other people, and I started using the ring a lot..”

“So..that's what 'becoming the mask' means?” said Jenna, sitting back down again..and getting a slightly concerned frown on her face.

“Yeah, pretty much. I mean, it kind of messes with your head a little bit, too, but probably nothing too bad if your disguise thinks a lot like you do. Oh, but you guys don't need to worry; the only reason I've actually changed this much, this fast is because I've been using the ring, like, two or three times every day. Once or twice a week is probably perfectly safe..right?” She directed the question to Liam, who put a hand against his chin for a second or two.

“Hmm, yeah, prob'ly. Now that I've seen it in action myself I got a better idea of how it works. The ring uses the magic of the person usin' it to do all the work, which's why it don't need a power source. Problem is, when you're not yourself often enough, your own magic starts forgettin' details of what ta turn back to. There are a few ways it could screw up and not work like it's supposed to, but they don't apply to you four..or me, for that matter. 'S long as I don't ask for the wrong thing in a disguise, at least.”

Akio said, “So wait..we all have magic?”
He shrugged. “Yeah, sure, everyone's got magic. Some more'n others.”

“Neat! But uh..Kell. Or, Kevin. Kellvin. Whatever.”

“Yeah? You might wanna get used to the first one.”

“If you could turn back into a guy, and still be all confident like you are now..?”

She shrugged. “I never really put much value in being male, and I like how I am now. If I suddenly decide I hate being a girl for some reason..and yes, I can think of a few possible reasons but it might be worth it..then I might consider it. But not as an impulse decision or anything. I mean, I kinda decided to become Kell after a lot of thought and discussion about it.”
“Mostly with me,” said Liam.

“Plus, at this point it'd be kinda suspicious, don't you think? I mean, people would start asking me how I managed to turn back, and I might not be as good at coming up with a consistent lie this time..

“Anyway, didn't you promise you'd try something if they did have a ring, and told us about it?” Kell looked at Liam.
“I didn't promise nothin'.”
“You said it'd be 'too interesting to pass up'. You've never passed up anything interesting before.”

“Yeah, well..it's a Monday. Not a whole lot of time when ya get right down to it, and what I'd like to do might take a while. How 'bout we save that for the weekend, huh? Ta have somethin' to look forward to.”

“What are you talking about exactly?” said Akio.

“Aw, nothin' major,” said Liam. “Just maybe borrowin' your ring. Or Kell's. Comin' up with a disguise to use next week.”

Jenna thought for a second or two. “..What's next week?”

“Arcade night. Duh!” said Akio, standing up. “But what are we gonna do now? I mean, we're already all together here and stuff..”

“I dunno. You wanna play some games or something?” said Kell.

Everyone said yes or nodded, but Jenna qualified her agreement. “Well, I have to change back before my parents get home.”

“But then Kell'd be the only girl. What if we just relocate?”

“Yeah, everyone'd fit just fine in my house,” said Liam. “Or..I ain't seen you as a girl yet,” he added, looking at Rolf.

“I'd rather not,” he said, speaking for the first time in a while.

Liam shrugged. “Eh, suit yourself. My house it is, then. I'll lead the way in case anybody don't know it. Or forgot.”

---

Great to have this out. But if you think everything will be 100% resolved after the next weekend, you might have missed some foreshadowing...

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.

Ring 4.3: Telephone

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Ring 4.3:

Telephone

“Um..Sam, I think I, uh..need your help.”
Sam had given Kevin her number yesterday afternoon, before they went their separate ways. Since Kevin was officially a girl now, it was hardly a romantic gesture or anything. Certainly, though, she hadn't expected her to call the very next morning. “Well..what with?”
“Umm..I-I'm sort of, uh. Well, I'm starting to..my chest is getting a little, um..heavier. A-and I don't think I can hide it at school, anymore. I-I-I think I need, some support..for them..” She could practically hear Kevin's face turning red.

“Uh-huh..”
“S-so, I need to go buy some..but it's k-kind of weird, I know I'm still g-growing so I need a bunch of different sizes, and..I really want some moral support for this, um..you know, a girl. Liam w-wouldn't be, um..much help.”

“Kevin. Did you ask your mom to help?”
“W-well...she's at work today, and um, I was hoping I could go with someone..a little closer to my own age, maybe?”
“Okay. I'm not too busy today, so I guess I can go with you. As long as your parents are okay with it.”
“Y-yeah...honestly, they sort of were the ones to suggest I get someone my own age to-to-to help.”

“All right, as long as it's fine with them. Now..you know the shopping center with the Japanese restaurant and the gaming store on it?”

“Um..I think so.”
“I know a place there that's pretty good on prices and stuff..and there'll be a lot less witnesses if we go there, rather than the mall. Meet me in front of the restaurant in about an hour?”
“S-sure, thank you.”

---

Cole had planned to sleep in another hour or two past when his phone woke him up, he grabbed it and hit the 'answer' button, holding it to his ear. “What?”
“Hey Cole! Guess what?” It was a girl's voice, which his groggy mind didn't process as at all familiar.

“Who is this..?”
“It's me, silly!”
“Yes, that clarifies everything.”
“We've been friends for, like, forever?”
“Oh..Akio. What do you want?”
“Guess what guess what!”

“I am too sleep-deprived to guess.”
“I went to bed as a girl last night.”

“Okaaay..and?”
“Well, I thought you'd appreciate it since you did that, too, a couple of weeks ago.”

“It was not a big deal. I'm going back to sleep now.”
“Nono, waitwaitwait. I also ran into Liam yesterday afternoon.”
“How?”
“I was wandering around the neighborhood and he was standing there. Did you ever notice how cute he is?”
“...Akio, we are not having this conversation on a Saturday morning.”

“Well, you're no fun.”
“I reserve the right to be no fun when my sleep is interrupted. Goodbye.” He hung up, and then turned the phone off, and turned over so his eyes were on his pillowcase and not the sunlight coming in through the shades.

---

“'Ey, Rolf.”

“...Liam? How did you get my number?”

“Ehh, blame Kevin. Sh—er, he put it in my phone for some reason last night. I dunno how he got it in the first place.”

“Gave it to him this week, in case Morley pestered him again.”

“Real kind of ya. Anyway, I was wonderin' if you were gonna be busy this afternoon, or if maybe you'd like to shoot some hoops or somethin'.”

“..Sure, I can do that. You have a court in mind?”

“There's a park 'round where I live, if ya don't mind comin' all this way. If that's too much trouble, I ain't opposed to goin' somewhere closer to you.”

“No, that's fine. I don't know where you live, though, so I need directions.”

“Sure, sure. You ain't worried I'll have the advantage or nothin'?”

“You already have an advantage: Your height. If I'm good enough that shouldn't matter.”
“Hah! I wish everyone had that kinda attitude.”

“..Hold on, Akio's calling.”

“Sure, I'll text ya the directions so ya have it in writin'. From that place we ate at last week.”

“That works.”

Boop

“Hey Rolf! Did I wake you up?”

“You're two hours late for that. Why are you still a girl?”
“Because I wanted to try sleeping as one. And Jen—er, Cole did it before. It sounded like fun!”
“..Was it?”
“I dunno, I mean, it was sort of exciting, but not really all that much..”

“It's just sleeping, Akio. You wouldn't be able to tell the difference if you turned into a wolf halfway through the night.”
“Mmmno, I guess not. Except I'd find a bunch of fur in the sheets, and be super confused about that. But also, guess who I ran into last night!”

“Who would that be?”
“I ran into Liam, and then Kevin showed up. He has a huuuge house..between that and the meal last Friday, I think he might be even richer than you are!”

“Wait. Liam, or Kevin?”
“Oh, yeah, I mean Liam. I guess they both hang out there a lot, though, she was pretty familiar with the layout.”

“...She who?”
“Um..she..?..er, no one! I meant Kevin, he, my mistake!”

“No, wait. Kevin's weird body changes lately..do kind of..is he actually turning into a girl?”
“Uh, um, nope, no way! Sh—he didn't tell me anything like that at all, and I definitely saw zero evidence that anything like that was going on last night. Nope.”

“..I think being a girl makes you an even worse liar, Aki.”
“H-hey, I'm a great liar. I just..need..time to prepare, is all. But no, seriously, Kevin is not turning into a girl.”

“He obviously is.”

“W-well, then, you decided that on your own if anyone asks, okay? You didn't hear it from me!”

“..Sure.”

“A-a-anyway, the next time you're Flora, I kinda want you to think of something for me, and let me know what happens.”
“..What do you mean?”
“Well..when I met Liam, and of course he never recognized me or anything, I kind of started flirting with him. I-I mean, without really thinking about it, I thought he seemed sorta, you know, kind of attractive and stuff. And I want to know if you'd feel that way as Flora too, you know, if he's just sort of attractive all on his own and it's not some kind of personal thing going on. So you'll need to think about what he looks like, you know, and how he talks and stuff.”

“..Akio, calm down. You're a girl, so of course you think he looks good. You thought I looked good the other night, too, didn't you?”
“Oh, y-yeah. Sure. But, what if this is different?”
“Maybe you should turn back into a guy if it bothers you that much. You didn't lose the ring last night, did you?”
“Umm..nope! It's still right here in my purse. Look, I'm holding it up to the phone even.”
“I can't see through the speakers, dummy. Just put it on and turn back. Then bring it to Cole's place before you actually do lose it. Now, Liam asked me to meet with him today, and I'm gonna get the truth out of him about Kevin. I was gonna ask about that anyway. So don't worry about telling me by accident.”

“I didn't tell you a thing~!”

“...Sure you didn't.”

---

Rolf put down his fork at lunch to get the phone. It was Cole. “What's up?”
“Hey, um, while I was taking a shower just now I thought of something..”
“You just took a shower?”
“Yeah, man. I have to catch up on my sleep some time, you know. Anyway, I thought, you know, the way Kevin's been looking lately kinda..reminds me of someone.”
“Go on.”
“I thought, you know, with the red hair, and the height. And his body shape looks kind of..you know..feminine? It sort of reminded me of Kell.”
“Kell...oh, yeah, from the arcade! You're right.”

“Yeah, I'm not sure I get why he would be looking like Kell. But that also means he's turning into a girl, doesn't it? He told me his doctor said something about hormone imbalances going on, you think that could be it?”
“Yeah, that makes sense. Look, Liam invited me to play basketball today, so I'm gonna ask him about it. Maybe Kevin's told him something he hasn't told us, you know.”
“Right. And if it turns out he is turning into Kell, and doesn't want to..maybe we could offer to let him use our ring.”

“What do you mean?”
“Well, if you were slowly turning into a girl with no idea why..wouldn't it be nice to 'disguise' yourself as how you used to look? And if the becoming the mask thing works the way we think it does, maybe he could eventually turn all the way back, too.”
“Hmm..yeah, that's a pretty good point.”
“Don't talk about the ring until we're sure of what's going on..and, actually, don't mention the ring at all. We should just tell Kevin we might have a way to help him with the whole changing-body problem, and then demonstrate that the ring can actually do that. He might not believe us otherwise.”

“Hm..yeah, sure. If I don't run into Kevin this afternoon we can catch him on Monday.”
"Sounds like a plan."

---

I think this may be the most appropriately-titled part of the Ring story ever. Guess this makes up for 4.1.