Part 17 Louder
Katie couldn't believe how calmy her aunt took the story. She never questioned it or looked surprised. Katie knew it was an odd tale and was surprised her aunt seemingly accepted it at face value. This only confirmed what she hadbelieved about her aunt though. The family had always talked about 'Crazy Aunt Martha' and made reference to her dabblings into things they felt best left alone. It was that talk that had gotten Katie interested in the supernatural in the first place... although she'd never really came face to face with anything like it until now.
"Ooooh... I always knew you had it in you! Your mother wanted nothing to do with this stuff, but you.... you're a curious one! Unfortunately, this is going to take more than curiosity to fix this mess! Mortals shouldn't mess with things they don't understand. That's where the dreamkeeper gets them. One minute of weakness opens the door and then he distorts reality. That's his whole point, you know? He takes the havoc and just plain disconnected moments of your dreams and makes it reality. But it is a distorted reality...know that! He'll split your mind into different personalities and let them all battle for control if he can. He's a tricky one!" Aunt Martha explained.
"So, you know about this guy?" Katie asked. She was shocked to know Aunt Martha was telling her what she'd spent HOURS on the computer and in books learning. "You mean all I had to do was ask you about this guy?"
"Oh yes.... I know him well! All that time on that silly computer could've been better spent talking to me!" Aunt Martha told Katie. Katie wondered how Aunt Martha knew that she'd spent time researching this on the computer... but at this point it didn't matter. Maybe she'd mentioned it when she told her the story in the first place?
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Billy woke and felt cool air because the blanket wasn't covering him properly. He had grown out of the blanket overnight but didn't realize it. He looked down at the end of the bed and saw painted toenails! He wiggled them to make sure they were his. They were! He also felt a weight on his chest that seemed odd but was afraid to look under the covers. Billy remembered the dream from the night before and immediately jumped out of bed because he had to see what had happened.
Looking in the mirror he saw a pretty 16 year old girl staring back at him. And then the reflection of the eyes seemed to put him in a trance. "We are Billi!" he heard a voice say inside his head..... her head....
"Look at my hair!" she said aloud seeing her mussed up locks. She turned around trying to get a look at the back of her legs "I'm gonna have to even out my tan today"
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Jennifer awoke feeling very strange. She looked around the room and saw that she was in Kayla's room. Everything felt wrong! She spun around and sat on the edge of the bed preparing to get up. She expected her feet to touch the ground but they didn't! She looked down to her legs dangling over the edge of the bed. They weren't the legs that she expected to see either... they were the legs of a child! She dropped down to the floor and padded to the nearest mirror. It confirmed what she already realized. She was a child! Barely 8 years old. If she is 8 then how old is Kayla? She thought back to the night before and remembered pieces of her dream. She remembered seeing the dreamkeeper... and she remembered seeing Kayla... and she remembered Kayla convincing her she was a child. And so she was! How could that be? And then she remembered Kayla being much older! She knew it was all the work of the dreamkeeper! He'd distorted another aspect of their lives!
She ran down the hall to her mother's room figuring she'd find Kayla there. That she did. Kayla was nursing an infant... and the infant was her mother!
"Mom????"Jennifer exclaimed in her high pitched child's voice.
"What dear?" Kayla asked.
"Noooooo... not you! Is that mom??????"little Jennifer asked pointing to the infant that Kayla was holding.
"Now seriously, how could this innocent little baby be your mother?" Kayla replied with a smirk as she pulled the child away from her breast so that Jennifer could get a better look. The baby began to get fussy and reach for Kayla's nipple. "Sorry, baby" Kayla said as she again held the child close to her.
"You made her younger.... until she turned into a baby again!?" Jennifer said "She was already little but now.... she's tiny!"
"Say and think what you will, but for all intents and purposes -I- am the oldest now and so -I- am the mother! I don't think this infant has any desire to be a parent right now. What do you think?" Kayla said as baby Marci played with the nipple on her exposed breast.
Little Jennifer was momentarily speechless. She'd even forgotten that her original reason for finding Kayla was the fact that Jennifer herself had lost half of her years and was now an 8 year old girl. "Hey.... what about me!" She whined realizing her plight as well.
"Don't you think you're a little too old to be nursing?" Kayla answered sarcastically with a laugh.
"No! You know what I mean!" little Jennifer replied stamping her foot "Make me older!"
"I should spank you for that attitude! Why can't you just humor me for a little while? Maybe if you humor me I can see about making you older after while?"
"What do you mean?" Jennifer asked.
"Just pretend to be an 8 year old for a while. It could be fun!"
"No!"
"Really, I think maybe you need a spanking. Such a sasy mouth!"
"Don't spank me! Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease!" Jennifer whined as she realized she was too small to stop Kayla from spanking her.
"Well, then humor me and pretend to be an 8 year old!"
"Uhh.......OK... I guess...." Jennifer answered reluctantly "But I want to be older soon or else I won't do this! So what do you want me to do?"
Kayla smiled telling her "Just say you want to be an 8 year old little girl"
Jennifer didn't know that Kayla had made a deal with the dreamkeeper and this room was now an extension of his own place.
"I want to be an 8 year old little girl" Jennifer said slowly trying to please Kayla. The dreamkeeper smiled in his shop as he watched the happenings in a mystical mirror.
"Say it again!" Kayla ordered.
Jennifer thought for a moment before speaking "I wanna be an 8 year old little girl" she said and laughed.
"That's better.... but say it again....."
Little Jennifer laughed some more "I wanna be an 8 year old little girl!" she said again. She laughed because Kayla was being silly. Little Jenni knew she was 8 years old and Kayla was just playing a game making her say that. It might be fun being the little girl while Kayla got to be the mommy she figured.
"So, how old are you?" Kayla asked.
Little Jenni broke out in giggles "I'm 8 years old! You know!"
"I know...." Kayla replied "I was just seeing if -you- knew! Well, I think we all need to get dressed and greet the day. I guess I need to fix breakfast!"
"I want Frosted Flakes! OK???" Jenni said excitedly.
"We'll see what's in the cupboard, hon. Why don't you get dressed and watch cartoons until breakfast is ready?"
"OK, mommy" Jenni answered and then skipped down the hall to what used to be Kayla's room. Her ponytail bounced with every step she took. Jenni wondered what she should wear and looked in the closet but all of Kayla's clothing was too big.
Kayla appeared carrying some clothing. "These should fit you better than that old stuff" she told little Jenni.
"Where'd those come from, mommy?" Jenni asked.
"Oh... I just had them delivered....." Kayla answered with a grin as she returned to her mother's old bedroom in search of some suitable clothing for herself.
Jenni grabbed some shorts, a T-shirt and tennis shoes and quickly put them on. Then she ran to the TV to hunt for cartoons.
Kayla looked over all of Marci's old clothing. She really preferred something more like Jennifer's teenage wardrobe but that was a little too small for her. Marci's clothing was mostly boring except for some of her underwear that caught Kayla's eye.
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Billi grabbed a short denim skirt and a short tank top that were originally Jennifer's and took them to the bathroom with her. She showered and shaved her legs getting ready for another day at the beach. She wrapped a towel around her wet hair and slipped on her skirt and tank top. She padded out of the bathroom and downstairs to greet the rest of the family who were all seated around the breakfast table.
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"Billi?" Kayla said seeing the return of a familiar face.
"Kayla? Jennifer??? " Billi asked.
"Yeah...... Looks like there were some changes last night, huh?" Kayla replied "Wow, that skirt is cool.... wish I had one like that!"
"Oh, wow... thanks.... " Billi answered as she sat down at the table and crossed her legs "This is, like, sooooooooo cool! You're really pretty, Kayla... but you oughta get some more flattering clothes. You should show that body off more! Where's Marci?"
"Marci's sleeping. You should see her now. She's just adorable! She's precious! Marci's only a few months old and we are bonding so well!" Kayla explained.
"A few months? Ohhhhh I gotta see her! I bet she's cute!" Billi answered as her female instincts kicked in.
"Let's not bother her now. I don't want to wake her. You know... I think she might even want to be younger!" Kayla replied.
"How do you know that???" Billi asked
"Well, maybe it is just me wanting her to be younger. A baby around makes me feel so 'needed'. If she was a newborn I'd just be so important to her... like I'd be everything to her! And that would feel so good for me!" Kayla explained.
"How can baby Marci get younger? Can she be born again?" little Jenni innocently asked. Jennifer and Marci were the only two not in control of their situations now... although Billi and Kayla weren't being controlled by their normal personalities either. Jenni didn't understand any of what they were talking about.
"Don't you worry about it!" Kayla told her and Jenni went back to her bowl of cereal.
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"Katie, I think we need to get over to your friend's home right away. I think things are changing and you don't want to lose them!" Aunt Martha told her niece.
They sped across town and back to Jennifer's home. Once there, Katie started to go on inside as she always did before her aunt stopped her. "Ah... I think you better knock!" her aunt said.
Katie looked at her aunt stangely and knocked on the door. "I hardly ever knock, Aunt Martha!? Jennifer and I are best friends. We're like sisters. She knows me better than anyone!"
Just then the door opened and a little 8 year old ponytailed girl stood looking up at the two strangers. "Hi! My mom's busy and she said to tell you she didn't want any of whatever you were selling!"
Jenni tried to close the door but Katie stopped it.
"I told you just barging in might be a bad idea" Aunt Martha said.
"Jennifer???" Katie asked the girl.
"I'm Jenni" she replied.
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To be continued