The Book of Masks (Vol. 1)

Third Thoughts

Previously: "The Desperate Collector" 

(Written by rugal b.)

You decide to listen to those bells in your head. Maybe he's not actually a bad guy but he gives off massive creepy vibes and you feel that it's better to play it safe and not get involved with him. "Sorry sir," you reply shaking your head, "I think I'm gonna actually keep the book."

Blackwell gives you a scowl although you're not sure if there is anger in it. "Are you sure boy?" he asks, "Is there no way to persuade you to sell me the book? It is a very valued part of my... collection, a collection I have spent a great many years building, and to lose it would greatly distress me."

"I'm sorry." you answer, "but two dollars or two hundred dollars I paid for this book and thinking about it I'd rather just keep it."

"Hmm, very well." Blackwell concedes, "However, should you ever feel the need to give up the book come see me. I can usually be found in this store as well as the more... eccentric antique shops around town."

* * * * *

It's Saturday night, and you're staring at what's now a hard, dull white mask thinking about what a problem this book has already been. To even get to the first spell required cutting yourself with a knife and leaving a bloody thumb print. The list of materials required to even make the mask itself was... quite strange to say the least. You're lucky though in that most of the materials you needed were actually found around the house, sometimes after exhaustive searching, and anything you didn't had was really only a short drive away to various stores and could be found for cheaper than you expected.

The last step now was polishing it and as you looked at the mask, you briefly wonder if it was worth it. You decide, however, that you've come this far and that there's little point in backing out now. So you find a good, clean rag and begin polishing.

By the time you head to bed, about four hours later, you can only see a few spots where the white has become a brilliant blue.

* * * * *

Polishing while watching television, polishing while browsing the internet ... It takes all night and all day Sunday, and aside from a few brief moments such as dinner or showering, you spend most of the weekend working on the mask, although you're a bit disappointed that

Monday morning, you actually manage to convince your mom to let you stay home by cooking up a story about a large essay that is due soon that you absolutely need to work on and give 100% of your attention. The truth is, you wanted to say home because of the mask. You want to go back to polishing it, to finishing it up and unlocking whatever secrets it may hold. You're a bright kid, after all, missing some school work isn't a problem and you can make it up quite quickly. The mask though ... the mask is something you'd rather have done and out of the way.

So you polish. And you polish. All day, no matter what you're doing, aside from certain things, you're polishing that damn mask. You're making headway but it's a process that's slow, almost excruciatingly so. The effort, you hope, will be worth it, but the time evening comes you've seen enough of the mask so you decide to put it up for the night and spend most of the rest of the day hanging out with Caleb.

Your sleep, however, proves to be a restless one. The mask and the desire to finish it is infesting your every thought and you can't stand it. Is this the mask's doing? Is it the magic power that rests in the book and it's spells? Or is it simply your own nerves and impatience? Or is it both? You're not sure but you eventually decide to just wake up early and get more work done on it before school.

Your efforts are finally rewarded around five o'clock, when all of the dull white coloring is gone and replaced with the blue; a blue that seems to be sparkling although that could be your eyes as you feel like you could cry in joy, like you've just won the ultimate marathon. After setting the mask back down on your bed you open the book back up and realize that you can finally turn the page to the next spell. On the back of the previous page, though, you find a continuation of the first spell. Carefully you read and reread it. It claims to be able to copy someone's very image though how it doesn't delve into. While reading, however, you're interrupted by a knock on the door and a voice calling out your name.

"Will?"

The voice sends you into an excitement that nearly matches the completion of the polishing as it's the sweet voice that belongs to your cousin Umeko, a girl that you have harbored a deep crush on for a long, long time. To your credit, there's no blood relation: she was an orphan whom your aunt and uncle adopted after having no luck conceiving a child on their own. She was a beautiful Japanese-American girl who was as equally kind and caring and her looks and nature caused many a guy to become infatuated, guys that she mostly kept at a distance. The few times she DID date someone, you were jealous in spite of yourself, but thankfully those relationships were always fairly short.

Quickly tossing the book onto your book shelf, you open the door and are greeted by Umeko's warm smile and beautiful visage as she looks fantastic in her purple halter top and black pants, her shoulder length black hair tied back in a ponytail.

"Oh, uh, hey Umeko!" you say, your voice cracking a little in nervousness before you correct it, "Uh, hey. So what brings you over here?"

"Oh, you know..." she starts as she enters your room and closes the door, "I was on my way up to the mall to grab a new dress for my whole performance at the church tomorrow, and since it's on the way mom wanted me to stop by here and see what Aunt Martha wanted us to bring over for lunch next Sunday."

You nearly do a double take at that, "Dinner?" you ask.

Umeko nods. "Yeah, in honor of my performance. They thought it'd be a good idea to spend the day together as a family thing. Your parents didn't tell you?"

"Nuh uh." you say shaking your head, "Nobody told me anything."

"Oh, well yeah. That's what's going on." she said. It was at that moment she noticed the mask on your bed. "Oh, hey... what's that?" she asked as she picked it up. "Huh, it's like some kind of mask. Did you make it? It's really pretty."

"Well... no, not really. I saw it in the mall and thought it looked pretty neat. It was surprisingly cheap."

Umeko, however, is looking at it with interest and you watch as she brings it up to her face and stands there... then her arms drop to her side and she falls onto the bed. In a panic you rush over to her and turn her over onto her back when, to your shock, the mask is absorbed into her face. You shake her, call her name, try to wake her up. She's breathing and her eyes are open but there's no response. You're panicking when after a few minutes the mask rises back up and you pull it off. She's woozy and you explain that she fainted and it's at that point that she decides she should be going.

You look at the mask and are surprised that it now has Umeko's visage... so THAT'S how it "absorbs an image." You run back to the spell book and decide to look at the next spell.

* * * * *

It's late, and everyone else has gone to bed. You're standing in your bedroom, thankful that the rest of your family is out for now. You used the material the book said to seal the mask and Umeko's image into it. With light trepidation you take the mask and place it on your face, falling back onto your bed as you black out. A few minutes later you wake up and can immediately tell you're different. Your shirt feels bigger, your pajama pants do as well though your slightly wider hips help. And you can feel a weight on your chest and longer hair in your face. You head to the nearest bathroom and take a look in the mirror.

It's Umeko. Or rather, it's Umeko wearing your clothes. You can't believe it! You touch your face, Umeko touches hers; you feel your hips and ass and so does Umeko. You remove your shirt and so does Umeko. You almost faint at the sight as there stands Umeko, dressed in your pajama pants and topless with her breasts exposed. It was a sight you'd long dreamed of.

"Ha ha!" you laugh, more in disbelief than anything else, "This is... this is un-freakin-believable." Umeko's voice echoes through the bathroom as she feels her stomach and then her chest.

You don't know what to do, a million thoughts in your mind. Should you tell Umeko tomorrow? Should you not tell her? You have to tell somebody but you can't tell her about... HER. What about Caleb? He's your best friend after all. Yeah, he could work. So many thoughts, so many possibilities and as you walk your way back to your bedroom and lock the door you don't quite care at the moment.

You're Umeko right now. You look like her, sound like her. Her perfect looks are yours. Her body is your body. And for now it's time for Umeko herself to do things that she only did in your wildest fantasies.

Next: "In Which You Tell Umeko Everything" 

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"Table of Contents (Vol. 1)" 
"The Book of Masks (Vol. 1)"