Andersonville 6                 by: Kelly Davidson

 

I saw them come out of the courthouse from across the street. There were four of them; all men dressed in business suits. Every day, just a few minutes after 6pm, they left the courthouse to go home. Three of them proceeded to their cars but the fourth man, maybe 21 or 22 years old would walk home to his apartment. Out of the four men, he was the only one who actually lived in Andersonville.

They said their good-bye’s to each other and the young man walked off alone. I followed behind him from a discreet distance. Years of experience as private detective were serving me well; my target had no idea that someone had been shadowing him for almost a week now. The young man greeted one of his neighbors standing outside and went into one of the three apartment buildings. Using my binoculars, I watched him get the mail out of his mailbox, number 104. He looked at a few bills then headed down the stairs.

I followed him inside and checked the name on the register. The person living in apartment 104 was named Pete Summers. Although he dressed like a businessman, I knew he had to be working for Dennis Butz. So I decided it was time to meet my co-worker. I just wish I hadn’t been wearing my short, red skirt and tan sweater. It had been my mother’s idea – in the hopes I may attract the attention of some young man at work. My mother seemed obsessed with the idea that I find someone to go out with on the weekends. It was an idea I was equally determined to make sure didn’t happen.

I knocked on his door and waited, pulling down my skirt so I didn’t appear too sexy to this young man. I remembered my days of being young and free – although they were never as good as other guys bragged about. Sometimes I wondered why men had to BS about how great their single lives had been. Pete opened the door slightly – then a small smile appeared on his face as if he recognized me from somewhere.

"Miss Anderson, what are you doing here?" he asked as if my visit was a pleasant surprise to him.

"I thought we should meet since we seem to be working for the same boss," I replied forcefully.

"I’m afraid you got that wrong Linda – I don’t work for Judge Herns."

"I’m not talking about June Herns. I was referring to Dennis Butz."

"Who?" he stated dumbly.

"Don’t start with me," I threatened. "You know who I’m talking about."

"Why don’t you come in Linda," he said opening the door all the way so I could come in. I walked past him into the living room and noticed for a bachelor, he kept his apartment pretty clean. "Can I get you a drink Linda, a cold pop maybe?"

"I’ll have what you’re having," I answered pointing to the bottle of beer in his hand.

"Sorry," he replied with a silly grin. "But you’re not old enough to drink yet."

"Didn’t I tell you not to start with me. We both know I’m older than I look."

He chuckled slightly but didn’t make a move to get me the beer I requested. "Now, what was the name of this person you were talking about?"

"Dennis BUTZ!" I hissed and spelled out his name. "That’s B-U-T-Z! Does his name ring a bell now?"

"Nope," he replied taking a drink of his beer. "I’m an independent business man Linda – the only person I answer to is myself." The smile on his face indicated he was enjoying this little game he was playing. I decided it was time to overturn the board.

"Cut the Bullshit Mister! Every day at 7:45 you and your three friends get into the elevator that takes you to the bunker." I saw the man flinch a little. Apparently, no one living in Andersonville was suppose to know about the bunker I had just mentioned.

"So what is it you do down there all day?" I inquired. "Program the temps to play with us – maybe even eavesdrop in on our conversations to find out what we’re up to?"

"I really don’t know what you are talking about," Pete replied calmly but now visibly shaken. He moved quickly to change the subject. "I was just about ready to order a pizza but since you’re here, why don’t I take you out to dinner? We can go to Pizza Hut and afterwards – maybe even see a movie."

I knew from his suggestion that I would get no more from him. I was also a little angry at the games he was trying to play with me, so I decided it was my turn to have a little fun. I gave him my best feminine smile.

"Why, what a wonderfully suggestion Pete," I said in a suggestive female tone. "You can take me to dinner – and hold the door open for me while I get in and out of your car. Then afterwards, we can walk to the Movie Theater holding hands – maybe I’ll even allow you to put your arm around me during the picture show." I saw a small smile grow on his face. He liked my idea.

"Then, after the picture show," I said softly and in a more seductive tone. "You can drive us up to Fox Lake where we can park and watch the Moonlight bounce off the water.

"And then," I added, putting my hands gently on his chest. My voice became loud and angry. "Then I can watch you jump in the lake you MORON." I pushed him away and turned to go.

As I was leaving his apartment, I heard him yell out, "You know you’re very attractive when you’re angry." I was too pissed to even reply back at him.

Fade out…

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

Voice of Dennis Butz – Thousands of years ago there was a war in the heavens, between the gods of old and the new arrivals. During the process, the earth was almost destroyed by fire and floods as our war ran unchecked. Finally, after centuries of conflict, an uneasy peace was achieved between our two people. Both sides recognized they needed the other, but neither side was willing to trust the other. However, as man grew in power and knowledge he challenged the gods themselves. To maintain the balance and keep the peace, a buffer zone was needed.

It’s a small town -- just like thousands of others spread across the land. Quiet streets, family-run businesses, and Saturday afternoon picnics. But this town is different. It’s a place for lost souls, for misguided individuals, and for those who are in need of a second chance. It’s also the last, best chance I have of freeing my people from their captors. The name of the project is Restoration; the name of the town is Andersonville!

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

Andersonville 6 – Friendship Lines

Story by Kelly Davidson

Edited by Carla Winters (Thanks!)

This story is dedicated to my TS brothers and sisters, who have the guts to stand up to the world and say, "I’m not going to live a lie anymore."

Fade in…

"We’re lost," my friend told me. I looked over at Rebecca who was studying the map carefully. "I don’t even see this road on the map – or the railroad tracks that the man was talking about. Maybe the tracks are covered with snow."

"I don’t think so," I replied. "We would have seen some evidence of them even if they were." I noticed the temperature gauge on my Ford Bronco was higher than normal. Considering we were in a snow shower and it was a scant 10 degrees outside that wasn’t a good sign.

"How would we tell Jerry?" she replied. "There’s at least 2 feet of snow on the ground."

My friend was right. The snow was coming down so hard that you couldn’t see more than 20 yards in front of you. It was a stupid idea to take a trip like this in late October. A cold front had moved in and was dumping snow all over the place that made driving treacherous at best. The upside to this was the pictures we took of the trains fighting the winter storm; they were spectacular. I suspected we’d be able to have some of them published in one of the many railroad magazines.

We had been on the road for almost two weeks now – crisscrossing the Northwest in search of trains and fun. But, it wasn’t the railfaning that had brought us out here. It was the dressing up and going out as two middle age woman in a different city that had lured us away from our families – well, mine anyway. Rebecca was about to lose hers. Her wife and married son no longer wished to see her anymore. It was a shame; Rebecca was a super-nice person who could no longer live with the lie she had been dealing with for all her life.

"I guess you have a point," I told her. "The tracks could be far enough from the road that we couldn’t see them in this crap." I felt the truck slide slightly on the snow-covered road. So much for the theory that 4-wheel drive vehicles didn’t slide on ice.

"Maybe we should head south towards Billings," I said. "The roads should be clearer than this back road, although this road doesn’t look to bad considering all the snow that has fallen over the past hour."

"Sounds like a good idea to me," Rebecca said turning to look out at the snow. "It is pretty to look at though."

She had been born Rodney Allen, a lovely person who I admired for many reasons. We were both TG individuals who had met years ago at a support group meeting. It wasn’t long before we discovered we had many of the same likes and dislikes – including trains. Back then, Rebecca had thought she was a crossdresser, but over time realized she was really a woman trapped in a man’s body.

Her discovery had put a strain on our relationship, not because I minded but because my wife didn’t want her showing up at our house as Rebecca. My wife barely tolerated my crossdressing on a part-time basis and we had long ago agreed I wouldn’t crossdress in front of the kids. While I had an obligation toward my wife’s feelings, I felt guilty about pushing my friend away. We kept in touch by phone but our friendship suffered as a result.

Rebecca’s family was even less open to the idea about her going full time. Her wife threatened to leave and her son made it clear she would never see him and her grandkids again if this happened. There had been a few other things her son had said – nasty things that had hurt my friend deeply. Now in her mid 50’s, Rebecca was looking at starting all over again. I had to admire her, I didn’t think I could do the same thing if I were in her shoes.

This trip had been my suggestion. Rebecca hadn’t gone full-time yet, as there were still a few more details to work on: like telling her boss. She was a private tutor for young kids and there wasn’t any doubt about what would happen to her job after she came out. Already a few of her co-workers had commented to her boss about how feminine Rodney seemed to be dressing at work these days. The principal of the school had warned her a few times about wearing jewelry to work and her long hair. It would only be a matter of time before a parent found out they had a Transsexual teaching their son or daughter and her career would be over. I thought maybe the trip, one last chance to relax before the shit hit the fan, would do her some good.

So we would drive to a new city and treat ourselves to a day as Jenny and Rebecca. We would visit the malls, go to movies, eat dinner as women, and just enjoy ourselves. The trip was a welcome distraction that Rebecca needed at the moment. In between our stops we would do some train watching, visiting places each of us had read about in our railroad magazine. So far, the trip had been a big success but in another day we would have to head back home to Indiana. I knew Rebecca was dreading it and to be honest, so was I. Oh, I missed my family dearly but spending all this time on the road with Rebecca and most of it dress as Jenny had been a wonderful experience.

"Try and find out where we are again," I told her again. For our safety, we both dressed as males on the trips between towns. I was fortunate to be shorter and more of the height of a normal woman. But, Rebecca was over 6 feet tall and tended to stand out in a crowd.

"I can’t make heads or tails of this," she responded. "Do you see a highway sign anywhere?"

"Not since we turned onto this road. Maybe we should –" I never got to finish my sentence. There was a loud pop and steam started rolling out of the front of the car.

"Oh Shit," I cursed. This wasn’t going to be good.

I pulled the truck over to the side of the road and popped the hood. I went outside and lifted the hood to see what the damage was; it turned out to be the radiator. The wind picked up and I realize how much colder it made the winter storm feel. Walking in this weather was out of the question.

"It’s the radiator," I told Rebecca getting back into the truck. My entire body felt frozen and I had only been out there a couple of minutes.

"What do we do now?"

"Pray we don’t freeze to death in the process of getting help," I told her. "If we’re lucky I can nurse the truck to a town where we can get it fixed. The only problem is, I don’t know where the next town is." As if it were an answer to our prayers, the lights of a snowplow appeared in the distance heading right toward us.

"I’ll see if he can tell us where the next town is," I told Rebecca. I stepped back outside into the freezing wind and flagged the truck driver down. He rolled down his window and gave me a stare.

"I’m having car trouble," I told him. "Can you tell me where the next town is?"

The man looked over at my friend and then at me as if he was unsure what to say.

"Hey buddy – I’m freezing out here. Can you help me out."

"Andersonville," he replied.

"How do I get there?" I asked. The truck driver was starting to give me the creeps. If I didn’t know better I’d have guessed he would have rather have us freeze than help us out.

"Go down about 2 miles and turn right at the white farm house. Go about 5 more miles and you’ll run right into it. Andersonville Auto shop is the third block down, you can’t miss it."

"Thanks," I replied with a smile. "Lots of snow out here today."

The man looked up at the sky. "I’ve seen worse." Then he gunned his motor and took off down the road.

"Strange guy," I told Rebecca getting in the car.

"He would say the same about us if he knew who we were," Rebecca laughed, causing me to do the same. No matter how bad the situation was my friend always had a way to make me laugh. "So what did he say?"

"There’s a town with an service shop about 7 miles away. If we’re lucky, the truck will get us there without us having to stop again. Let’s just hope we have enough anti-freeze to make it. What time is it anyway?"

"Almost 8am. Hope they have a restaurant in this town."

"If they do I’ll buy you breakfast," I said. "How does that sound?"

"Sounds just fine to me Jenny."

I grinned. "I thought it would. Just remember to call me Jerry when we get there. I doubt if these small town folks are as open minded as those in the big cities. And find out where Andersonville is on the map. Maybe we can figure out where in the hell we’re at." I started up the truck and threw it in gear.

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

"Unit 21, what the HELL do you think you’re doing?" Colonel Myers was hopping mad at what had just transpired. The snowplow driver was suppose to have led them away from Andersonville not point them in the right direction.

"Doghouse, they were having serious car problems," the plow driver replied back on the secure line. "If I hadn’t helped them out they may have frozen out there. The weatherman is calling for another 16 inches of snow before tonight."

"Then why didn’t you call for a tow truck from one of the other towns?"

The Colonel wanted to reach through the radio and choke the man.

"I’m sorry sir – I didn’t think of that."

"Well think of this soldier, we don’t allow visitors in Andersonville – NEVER! DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR!"

"Yes sir," the man responded back swiftly.

"Consider yourself on report and return to base." Colonel Myers flipped off the radio in anger before the man had a chance to reply.

"He’s only human Barry!" Jeff mentioned to his superior. "He thought he was doing the right thing back there."

"Well he wasn’t," the Colonel snapped back. "We can’t have people visiting our town. What happens if others find out about our little hideaway? Think of it!"

"I got some information on the driver if it helps," the Sergeant said while holding out some papers. Colonel Myers took a moment to calm down before replying.

"Okay, what have you got Jeff?"

"The truck is registered to a Jerry Kohl from Indianapolis, Indiana. He’s married with two kids, 6 and 7. He’s 42 years old and works at a place called Software One – I’m looking it up now on the computer. No priors, a couple of traffic tickets. Sounds like a pretty normal guy.

"And what about the other one?" the Colonel stated factually. "For all we know he could be a mass murderer."

"Come on Barry – somebody this clean wouldn’t be hanging around with a person like that."

"You can guarantee me of that Jeff? Maybe the guy is a hitchhiker who Mr. Kohl picked up along the way. He may not be aware of who he has sitting next to him." The Sergeant could see his boss was very nervous.

"Look Barry, we’ll get them in and out of town in a couple of hours," Jeff reassured him. "By the end of the day they won’t even remember being in Andersonville."

"They shouldn’t be here in the first place," his boss replied in a very unhappy tone. "Make sure they don’t run into any of the temps while they’re here – understand. I don’t want to have to make them residents. And get some of our people into town right now – code Alpha 1. We can’t present these two guests with a ghost town. It’s suppose to have almost 35,000 residents, let’s make it appear that way to them."

"Yes sir," the sergeant replied formally and left, leaving his boss to stew in his anger.

‘One lame-brained idiot has placed the entire operations in jeopardy,’ Colonel Myers kept saying to himself. He wished those programmers would get their act together and fix the problem with the temps eyes.

The Colonel’s private phone rang and he picked it up. It was one of his men informing him that the transport van was about 10 minutes out. Barry Myers slammed down the phone and cursed loudly several times– he had forgotten about the five new residents scheduled to arrive this morning. With the Temps off the street his security was compromised. He decided to call a quick conference with his men to see what could be done to make sure none of these prisoners escaped.

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

Luck was smiling on us. I was able to limp the truck into town without having to stop again. The mechanic took one look at the trouble and smiled. His smile told me this was going to cost me a bundle by the time he was through.

"I’ll have to order a new radiator from Lewistown," he said. "Fortunately for you my driver is already there picking up another part. I should have you fixed up by noon."

"Great," I told him. "Can you recommend some place around here to eat. I’m kind of tired of eating at McDonalds all the time."

"Best restaurant around here is Sherry’s. Go down two blocks and turn right. They have the best breakfast in town."

We thanked the mechanic and started heading in that direction. I looked around and took everything in. What amazed me about Andersonville was its size and how clean it was. This town seemed to be prospering rather well. What I found strange was the lack of people on the street. I guess most were trying to stay out of the cold, although it seemed a lot warmer here than it did on the road coming in – maybe about 20 degrees warmer and I noticed there wasn’t nearly as much snow on the ground. We walked by the Courthouse; a huge impressive building that caught my friend’s eye. She gave me a grin.

"I’ll catch up with you in a minute," she told me. "I have to check it out and see what it looks like inside."

"Can’t it wait until after breakfast? It looks like we’re going to be here for a while anyway."

"Come on Jenny, we usually don’t eat this early anyway. Look, why don’t you hit the dress shop over there and I’ll meet you at the restaurant in 15 minutes."

"Fine," I agreed. I watched her cross the street and headed to dress shop up the block. If I found something I liked I could always tell the clerk I was buying it for my wife.

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

"Did you hear that?" Corporal Edwards said to Jeff. The three soldiers were huddled around the listening post that Edward was in charge of. Each of them had a set of expensive headphones on.

"The one guy called the other man Jenny. And why did he suggested to him that he check out the dress shop?"

With the Temps off the street there wasn’t anyway to follow the stranger’s movements so the men in the bunker had to rely on their listening devices planted around town. Due to the breakdown in the security, all the police officers were at the courthouse watching over the prisoners, leaving no one available to physically watch their two visitors.

"What’s going on?" Barry Myers demanded to know.

"Sounds like we have a couple of fruitcakes sir," Edward replied.

"Why in the HELL isn’t anyone watching them?" Colonel Myers asked angrily noticing Jeff and Mac were both listening in on the conversation.

"Sir, all our manpower is either at the courthouse or hasn’t arrived yet," Jeff answered in a straight, military tone. "We just barely got someone to the restaurant they’re headed to.

"Goddamn it – get some temps in the windows so we can see what the hell they’re doing. I told you to make sure they didn’t run into any of the temps Jeff – I didn’t say pull the plug on them."

"Yes sir," Jeff respectfully snapped back. He had never seen his boss so jumpy before. "You heard him Mac – let’s get some eyes on them."

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

Rebecca entered through the front door of the courthouse. There was no one to greet her, but she did hear some sounds coming from behind a set of doors that appeared to be the courtroom. She debated about going in and decided against it – it may upset the Judge. Instead, she walked around admiring the artwork on the walls and ceiling of the entranceway. It was by far one of the most beautifully courthouses she had visited.

There was a door with a sign that read: ‘Balcony’. Since there was no one looking, Rebecca didn’t see the harm of checking it out. Quietly she walked up the stairs and entered into an unfinished room. It appeared at one time this had been part of the courtroom but now it was sealed off and used for storage. She noticed a small window off to one side that still overlooked the courtroom. She decided to check out the trial going on.

From the window, Rebecca could see it was large courtroom with several rows of elaborate, dark wood benches. In front was an equally impressive bench where the judge was seated. She was an older woman who displayed an air of dominance about her. Rebecca counted no less than four police officers in the room – along with a young lady who must have been the court reporter. The person on trial was a fat, middle age man who was hanging his head. Apparently whatever the Judge had said to him had had a dramatic effect on his conscious.

The Judge said something else that Rebecca couldn’t understand then lifted her hands in front of her, placing the palms together as if she was carrying something. To Rebecca’s amazement the Judge’s hands started to glow and a small ball of light came out of her palms.

She watched in half shock and excitement at what happened next. The ball of light shot out of the Judge’s hands and struck the man standing in front of her somewhere around the chest. The man step backward slightly as if he were going to fall then regained his balance. Almost immediately changes started happening to him. Rebecca watched in pure amazement as his hair started spurting out of the back of his head while changing colors from his original gray to solid black. His weight started disappearing as his hips grew wider and higher – giving him a more female appearance. Then his clothes changed as well, transforming from an orange jumpsuit into a professional, tan skirt suit.

"Welcome to your new life Mrs. Abbot," the Judge said to the new woman who had once been a man. "Officer Merrick, will you make sure she gets to her car okay."

The Judge disappeared into her chambers followed by the young woman who didn’t look to be any older than 17 or 18 years old. The officers drifted off as well, leaving the courtroom empty. Rebecca sat down against the wall trying to catch her breath. She was hyperventilating with excitement over what she had just seen. She had to tell Jerry about this right away. Her dream to become a real woman was about to come true.

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

"Well," the Colonel demand, "have you found him yet?"

"I’m still looking sir," Jeff responded nervously. He had several temps looking out the window now but they could only spot one of the men. He had entered a dress shop, which caused the Sergeant to wonder who they were dealing with. The other man couldn’t be found.

"Keep looking," Colonel Myers ordered in a military tone. "He couldn’t be have gone too far."

"Found him sir," one of Jeff’s temps announced. The Sergeant breathed a sigh of relief.

"Where?" Colonel Myers barked.

"Walking down the street from sector 5," the temp said. "I didn’t catch were he was coming from. Seems to be in a hurry – more like he’s trotting than walking."

"Does he look scared? What’s in the area that he could have come out from?" Barry demanded to know.

"An office supply shop, a bank, and a plumbing store. There’s also the Courthouse." The Colonel’s face went pale.

"Sir, I doubt if he was in there," Jeff responded. "From what I can tell he seems to be in a good mood. Maybe he just went for a walk around the block."

"And maybe he was snooping around the Courthouse while the Judge was holding trial. Get Officer Merrick on the horn – NOW!" The Colonel saw his career starting to slip away.

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

The dress shop had been something of a bust. A man, and not a very knowledgeable one at that, ran the store. Not only did he not have any idea were anything was, he seemed almost embarrass to be there.

I walked into the restaurant across the street and took a seat by the front window. Something bothered me about this town – it was the lack of people. Granted, it was a cold day but I didn’t pass anyone on the way nor was the auto traffic very busy. Even now I would see an occasional car drive by but not enough in what you would expect to see in a town this size. A young lady came out of the back wearing a pink waitress uniform that was too big on her and looked as if it had been thrown on in a hurry. As a crossdresser, I tended to notice things like that more than the average man did.

"Can I get you some coffee sugar?"

"Decafe please." Since my heart attack five years ago, my doctor had ordered me to avoid as much caffeine as possible. Years ago I had stupidly thought I would live forever and had forsaken taking care of my body. It had reminded me one day with a devastating heart attack, one that almost took my life. And I was only 37 at the time – who would’ve believe someone so young would have a heart attack. I certainly didn’t.

"Kind of quiet around here, isn’t it?" I said to her while she poured me my coffee. In fact, the dinner room was empty except for me. It didn’t seem natural that I would be the only customer in the restaurant at this time of the day.

"It’ll pick up soon," she said with a smile. "Do you want to order now or wait for your friend to show up?" I looked up at her suspiciously.

"How do you know I’m with someone?" The waitress blushed slightly.

"My boyfriend works down at the auto shop. He told me you were coming."

I nodded my head with suspicion. There was something strange about this town, it made me nervous, and now I was beginning to feel paranoid. I chuckled at how stupid I was acting. Imagine, an entire town watching us while trying to hide some dark secret. What a silly idea! Still, I couldn’t shake the fact that Andersonville felt like something out of the Twilight Zone.

"I’ll wait," I replied with a smile. She returned my smile and disappeared into the back again. A few minutes later the door opened and Rebecca walked in with a look of great excitement on her face.

"Jerry, you won’t believe this," she babbled out. I put my finger to my mouth.

"Keep it down, will you. Now what’s up?" My friend sat down across from me like she had just won the lottery.

"You won’t believe this man, I’ve discovered something incredible! No, not incredible, wonderful! You just won’t believe it."

Our waitress came back out and asked if we were ready to order. I settled for a small stack of pancakes but my friend could hardly contain herself to look at the menu. She finally ordered the special just to get rid of the waitress.

"Okay, now what did you find out?" Considering the strangeness of this town I was pretty intrigued at this point.

"They change men into woman here," he replied excitedly. "I saw them do it to someone less than 15 minutes ago. Jerry, it’s like a dream come true."

"Slow down here for a minute Rebecca. What did you see?"

"Well," Rebecca responded with joy, "there was this man standing in front of this female Judge who looked to be about 50 years old. This Judge held her hands together and something shot out of it, like a ball of light. A few moments later he was changed into an attractive, young woman. Jerry, I’ve found paradise."

"Hold it Rebecca – think about what you’re saying. First, this place isn’t even on the map. Second, while the people seem friendly enough, it’s also obvious they don’t want us around. And third, we don’t know what the hell is going on here."

"Jerry, don’t you get it? That man must have wanted to become a woman just like me. Do you know what happened afterwards – she thanked the Judge? Don’t you get it? If this person didn’t want to become a woman then she would have been hollering about it. Jerry, I can finally see my dream come true. I can be a woman – I can be whole!"

"Rebecca, for Pete sake slow down and think about this. What happens if you’re wrong? Or if the price of being changed into a woman means you can’t leave here again? What about your family?"

"They don’t want to see me anymore Jerry. When I start living full time as Rebecca, I’ll be dead to them. Look, we can both make a new life here. Andersonville doesn’t seem that bad of a place."

"We? Now hold on Rebecca," I said while trying to remain calm. "I have a life back in Indiana. My wife and kids are waiting for me to come back home. I’m not about to abandon them."

"Jerry, think about this. We can both be woman, maybe even real sisters. They must supply you with a new life. Think of the fun we can have."

"Damn it Rebecca," I swore angrily, "I’m a crossdresser, not a Transsexual. I happen to like being a man and I also like my current life. That’s the difference between you and me. If you want to stay in Andersonville then fine! But when my truck is fixed I’m getting the hell out of this town and forgetting that it even exist."

"You have to stay!" she insisted. "They’re going to find out about you anyway and they won’t be to happy when they find out you left."

"Look, we can leave together and you can come back later on," I countered.

"What happens if I can’t find this place again," Rebecca explained. "What happens if this place only appears every hundred years like that town in England – what’s it name, Brigadoon."

"Come on Rebecca, you can’t seriously think that’s what this place is."

"Jerry, there’s something magical about this place – don’t you feel it?" The truth of the matter was I did. I knew exactly what my friend was saying.

I heard the door open and observed a police officer walk into the room and take a seat at the counter. The waitress gave him a welcoming smile as she poured him a cup of coffee.

"That’s one of the officers who was in the Courtroom," Rebecca whispered to me.

"Wait a minute, you didn’t say anything about cops being there," I replied with caution. "Maybe this guy was a bad man and turning him into a woman was his punishment."

"If that’s their form of punishment around here than I’ll take it," Rebecca answered back in a humorous fashion.

I didn’t laugh at her comment. I could see my friend wasn’t thinking clearly about this anymore. All she could see was her greatest desire becoming a reality.

"Think about this Rebecca," I tried reasoning. "What do you think the cops were there for, as material witnesses? Rebecca, this doesn’t feel right!"

"I’m going to go talk to him," she told me with a grin.

"No!" I replied back in a panic. "Let’s think about this a little longer."

"I can’t Jerry, I’ve waited all my life for this opportunity. I’m sorry buddy, I’ll try to make sure they release you after they’re done with me."

"Come back," I said in a loud whisper. By this time the officer had heard us talking and was looking at us strangely. Rebecca approached the officer and said a few words to him. The cop listened for a moment and nodded, then turned his head toward me; he had a serious look on his face. I decided it was time to get out of here before he called for backup. I started walking toward the door but in a blink of an eye the officer was standing in front of me.

"You’re not thinking of leaving without paying for your meal – are you Mr. Kohl?" the cop asked in a serious manner. I noticed his nametag said ‘M Merrick’.

"How did you know my name if we haven’t even met before?" I demanded to know in a scared and weak voice.

A thin smile appeared on his face. "Why don’t we go see the Judge and talk about it."

"I’ll rather not," I told the officer. If my friend was telling me the truth, there was no way of knowing what I would end up as. All I wanted was to get back to my truck and put as many miles as I could between this crazy town and me.

"I’m afraid I must insist," the police officer said in a rather formal tone. I turned to begging.

"Please, just let me go. I promise I won’t say anything about what I’ve seen here."

"Jerry, it’s going to be okay," Rebecca said calmly with a smile.

"Shut up you stupid fool!" I gave her an angry look. "Where do you think you are, in the land of wishes?

"Let’s go, both of you," the cop said. He grabbed my arm and pulled me out the door. The strength of this man was amazing, I knew I would never be able to break free from him. Rebecca followed behind on her own power.

"You’re hurting me," I protested.

"Promise me you won’t try to run away and I’ll let you walk there on your own," he offered.

"I promise." Seeing how fast the man could move I knew I couldn’t outrun him.

We were led inside the Courthouse and down the hallway to a small office where a young, teenager girl was working. She gave us both a momentary, sad look that seemed to indicate our visit with the Judge wasn’t going to be all that pleasurable.

"She’ll be with you in a minute Mark," the girl said looking back at us with a long face.

Rebecca didn’t seem to notice. All she could think about was that soon she would be rid of her male body nature had cursed her with. I didn’t say anything to her but I had my doubts about that too. An attractive, blonde-hair woman joined us in the outer room a few minutes later. She was wearing a pair of slacks and white, feminine blouse. The blonde hair lady looked both of us over carefully.

"Hi Mark. Are these the two visitors?"

‘Visitors’ – I hope that would still be the case after the Judge was through with us.

"Yes," he replied keeping a keen eye on me. Apparently, the officer wasn’t too concerned about Rebecca who was sitting nearby with a huge smile on her face.

Two more officers entered the room and I gasped when I saw them. Their eyes seemed to twinkle back at us. The intercom buzzed and the young woman picked up the phone, said a few words, and put it back down.

"The Judge wants to see you and Dr. Green first," she told the cop.

Officer Merrick nodded at the two other officers and said, "keep a good eye on them." The two ladies and the officer disappeared behind the wooden door.

"What do you think they’re talking about?" Rodney asked.

"What do you THINK they’re talking about you jerk!" I snapped. "Our deaths." I looked at both officers standing in front of the entrance. With luck we could over power them and get away. But then I realize it would be a futile effort; Rebecca wouldn’t help me escape and even if I did get past the two cops on my own there was no place for me to run. I was trapped and the people in charge knew it.

"Jerry, I’m sorry for getting you into this. But I had to do something." The door opened and Officer Merrick stepped out.

"You can go now," he told the two officers. They left us alone with just this officer Merrick.

"You don’t get it, do you," I said to Rebecca. "This isn’t like finding a bottle with a Genie inside who grants you three wishes. We have no idea what’s going to happen to us. If they can change men into women then they can change us into something else as well.

"Keep quiet," the officer told me. I gave him an angry glare.

"Why, because I’m telling her the truth?" I snapped at him. "This isn’t the Land of Oz and you’re not our Fairy God Mother. So what the hell is going to happen to us Officer Merrick?"

"You’re find out soon enough," the police officer replied grimly.

The door to the Judges' chambers opened up and the blonde-haired lady who I guessed was Dr. Green stepped out. "Rebecca, if you would come in now." She had a pleasant smile on her face.

"See, I told you buddy. She even used my female name. Wish me luck!"

As she strolled into the Judge's office I couldn’t help but think my friend was walking into some kind of ambush. The door closed behind her leaving me alone with the officer. I sat there sulking. What would happen to me and to my family? The people in charge of this place wouldn’t let me go now, I was sure of that. And without me around to influence my kid’s lives, how would they turn out? Damn it, they needed a father in their lives.

"Do you mind if I get a drink of water," I asked the officer.

"Wait here." In a blink of an eye, he was suddenly handing me a glass of water. I took the glass and thanked him.

"You’re pretty fast," I commented. He nodded but didn’t say a word. "Officer, I’m sorry for being rude to you a few minutes ago. I’m usually not like that, really."

"I guess you could say I didn’t catch you on your best day," he said with a small grin.

"That’s for sure. I’m normally – " A small scream from the other side of the door interrupted my thoughts. I tried to stand up but Officer Merrick put his hand on my shoulder and held me down in the chair.

"Relax – he’s not hurt," the officer told me.

"Then why did he scream?" I wanted to know. It sounded like the scream of a small boy.

"You’ll find out in just a minute," the cop replied. "The Judge is almost through with him."

As if on cue the door to her office opened up and Dr. Green stepped out holding the hand of a small child – a male child. There were giant tears on the boy’s face.

"Danny, I want you to sit down next to Officer Merrick until I’m done with your friend." The boy did as he was told, giving me the saddest look I’d ever seen anyone give me before. I knew who it had to be.

"Rebecca?" The boy stood in front of me with tears on his cheeks and nodded. I turned and faced the doctor who was standing there in the doorway with a pleasant smile on her face.

"Why did you do this?" I demanded to know. "You knew she couldn’t stand being a male anymore." But the doctor made no attempt to answer my question

"The Judge will see you now, Mr. Kohl." She made a motion for me to follow her in. I looked down at the boy and then at the officer – I really didn’t have a choice did I? So I got up and followed her into the Judges chambers.

Judge Herns was nothing like I expected. She was seated behind her desk but didn’t seem like the stern type of person I had been expecting. Her assistant was seated beside her with a notebook in her hands. The doctor pointed me to a seat in front of the judge’s desk and took her spot by the window.

"Good morning Mr. Kohl," the Judge started off in a pleasant tone. "I must say, I wasn’t expecting you or Mr. Allen to be in my presence today."

"If I told you this was just a big misunderstanding would you let us go?" I asked politely. The Judge chuckled slightly.

"This isn’t a misunderstanding Mr. Kohl. Your friend sought me out in the hopes I would change his life – and so I did."

"Rebecca sought you out in the hopes you would change her into the woman that she is Your Honor, not a little boy," I corrected her.

"Yes, I suppose you’re right," she sighed slightly. "I’m afraid Danny is going to have a hard life ahead of him."

"Why?" I demanded to know. I tried to ask in a way that didn’t sound angry but my anger was starting to show.

"A number of reasons which I’m not going to get into." Her tone was calm and cool. "Since you’ve no business with me – you’re free to go. I understand your truck should be ready soon."

"But what about my friend?" I protested.

"He’s now a citizen of Andersonville Mr. Kohl. He won’t be going with you."

"But turning him into a little boy is a death sentence Your Honor! You can’t leave him that way!"

"Why not? He was rather insistence that I changed him. I’ve done my part – now he has to live with the consequences." The Judge gave me a stern stare that indicated she wasn’t going to argue the matter with me.

"What kind of person are you," I asked angrily. "Turning her back into a little boy was the worst thing you could have done to her. Why not just cut her throat– it would be more merciful."

"I disagree Mr. Kohl. Turning her back into a small boy will make her stronger. She will learn to live with disappointment."

"She’s already DONE THAT!" I yelled. "She’s had to live as a woman trapped in a man’s body all her life. Making Rebecca relive her personal hell one more time doesn’t benefit anyone?"

"Watch you’re tone Mr. Kohl," the Judge warned me sternly. "While I understand your concern it’s best you remember where you’re at. I set the rules here." She thought for a moment and continued.

"However, you do make a strong argument for your friend. Maybe we can work out some kind of arrangement."

"What kind of arrangement?" Somehow, I knew I wasn’t going to like what the Judge had in mind.

"A simple one. I’ll turn your friend into the girl he wants to be providing you agree to stay here with us." The Judge’s offer was like a nightmare; having to choose between my best friend’s quality of life and my own family.

"There has to be another way," I told her. "What happens to my family when I don’t return?"

"A fair question," Judge Herns responded. "If you choose to stay I’ll make sure your family is well taken care of. I’ll provide your wife and kids with a suitable father who’ll raise them the way you wanted them to be raised. No one will remember you existed, not even your brothers or sisters. In a sense, you’ll be wiped out of everyone’s memories. Only your deeds will remain and everyone will remember them as being done by someone else.

"And if I decide to leave then I have to live with the fact I had a chance to save my friend from a life of misery and chose selfishly."

"Your friend was the one who was selfish, not you," she explained. "He was willing to sacrifice your life to fulfill his dream."

"You don’t know my friend Judge," I shot back. "All her life she’s wanted just one thing; to have a body that matched her brain. Because of who she is – Rebecca has suffered at the hands of other people who thought they were better than she was. She’s lost everyone for having the guts to stand up and say she couldn’t live a lie anymore. Than she sees an opportunity to make her dream come true – how can I blame her for doing what she did? It was like throwing a drowning person a life preserver; of course they’re going to grab at it. I would’ve done the same thing."

"I’m not going to argue the point Mr. Kohl," Judge Herns interrupted. "But getting back to what you said earlier, if you decide to leave you won’t remember anything that happened here today. So you see, there will be no guilt to live with."

"But my friend still remains as a little boy."

"Yes," the Judge replied. "If he had remained behind that would have been a unselfish act and I would have granted his wish. Now, his fate rests on your shoulders."

"That’s a horrible thing to do to me Your Honor. Even if I don’t remember my decision, I still have to make it. Either way, someone pays for how I decide."

"But only one person suffers," the Judge responded softly. "If you stay, I’ll turn your friend into a beautiful, young woman and give her a life that she’ll be happy with. As for you, I’ll provide you with new life as well, one that you will find both pleasant and for-filling.

"But – but I love my kids Your Honor." I pleaded to her sense of family. "I can’t let go of them."

"Then you must do what is right for you. I’ll give you until tomorrow to make your decision.

"I can’t make a decision by then," I cried. Dr. Green intervened.

"Judge, perhaps you could do something to help Mr. Kohl decide."

"What do you have in mind Dr. Green," Judge Herns asked. I had a sinking feeling that the Judge already knew what the doctor was going to suggest.

"Since you’re offering Mr. Kohl a new life, perhaps you should let him live it until tomorrow. Knowing what’s in store for him for the rest of his life will make it easier to for him to decide."

"Now wait a minute," I started to say but the Judge waved me off.

"Dr. Green is correct Mr. Kohl. Knowing how you’ll be living for the rest of your life will make it easier to decide. Sit still please."

I tried to move but found my body suddenly frozen in the chair – as if some force was holding me in place. The Judge lifted her arms and closed her eyes. I noticed her lips were moving but I couldn’t hear any words coming out of them. I looked over at the doctor but she stood there giving me a comforting smile as if nothing was out the ordinary. I looked over at the young teenager who was giving me a sympathetic look at my fate. Then I noticed a ball of energy rising from the Judge's hands. It glowed and despite what it was intended to do, I found it to be rather pretty. When it rose completely out of her hands, the Judge opened her eyes and stared right at me. The ball of light/energy darted right at me and hit me in the chest. I didn’t feel a thing when it entered – it was almost as if my body absorbed whatever it was. But then I felt changes, horrible changes, happening to my body.

My hair started growing at a tremendous rate. Even the bald spot on the back of my head seemed to be covered with hair. My body shrank in size and the extra weight I carried disappeared to give me a lean, skinnier waist. My hips moved up and outward and the muscles in my arms and leg disappeared – giving me a more feminine look. Then there seemed to be a great deal of activity in the chest and groin – and I watched in semi-horror as two lumps started to grow out of my chest to become breasts – WOMAN’S BREAST. I suddenly felt a strange sensation in my groin and I knew what was happening to me. The Judge had decided I would live the rest of my life as a female.

My clothes were going through a change as well. My pants came up and spilt becoming a short, flowered skirt. My shirt changed to a cute, blue blouse while my old brown coat became a high school jacket. I felt, with some fascination, a bra wrapped itself around my two, new breast and a pair of hose worked their way up my legs. Then my old, ratty tennis shoes turned into a pair of black, female shoes.

"I’m sure you won’t have as much trouble adjusting to your new clothes as some of our other residents," the Judge said with a wink.

I was scared and slightly upset that the Judge had decided to let everyone know in the room that I wasn’t a stranger to wearing woman’s clothes. I tried to stand up but found myself a little shaky after the transformation. The blonde-haired doctor rushed over to help me up.

"This isn’t what I wanted," I told her somewhat boldly.

"Then you have until tomorrow to figure out what you want to do. For the time being you’ll be known around town as Jane Harper, the doctor can fill you in on the rest. I’ll see you tomorrow at 8:30. Oh, and Miss Harper – I expect you to behave and act as a young lady now. If you don’t, I’ll be very disappointed." Somehow I knew that disappointing this Judge wasn’t a good thing.

The doctor held my arm and gently helped me out the door. Rebecca, or rather Danny, was still waiting for us in the office with Officer Merrick. When she saw what they had done to me she began to cry.

"No, it should be me in that body. Jerry, tell them they made a mistake."

I got angry with my friend for acting this way. I had just been turned into a woman – a teenager at that – and all she could do was cry that it wasn’t her instead of me.

"Shut up you asshole," I yelled, causing the young boy to cry even louder. I felt guilty about what I did but inside it made me feel good. I knew Rebecca was suffering more than I was but I didn’t care at the moment.

"Jane, you’re friend is upset," Dr. Green tried to explain but I cut her off.

"So am I doctor! If she had listen to me in the first place we wouldn’t be in this mess; and I wouldn’t have to choose between my family and her happiness."

"What?" Danny asked in surprise. "What do you mean? What is she talking about."

"Look," Dr. Green said in a frustrated voice, "stop arguing. Now let’s get both of you up to my office where we can talk." She took Danny’s hand and led the way while I followed. Officer Merrick gave me a grin and went off in the opposite direction. We walked up to the second floor where her office was located.

"Jane, I’m going to talk to Danny first. I want you to sit there until I’m ready for you."

I didn’t respond. I sat down on the wooden bench outside her office and watch the doctor pull my friend inside with tears still running down her face. Rebecca was right about one thing; it wasn’t fair for me to be in this body; it should have been her.

I waited around for a few minutes then decided to leave. I wasn’t really in the mood to talk to someone who had been a part of changing me into a woman and besides, I tended to think clearer when I was walking. As I stepped outside I was greeted by the chilly air that seemed to go right through my thin skirt. Apparently this new person I had become dressed for style and not practicality.

The cold wind nipped at my legs despite the nylons I had on, forcing me to make a quick decision on where to go. I remembered there was a small mall not far away and decided that was as good as place as any to walk around. I noticed on the way to the mall that the streets were now active with people going to and from; with most of the people being those ones with the funny, twinkling eyes like the two police officers I had seen earlier. A couple of these people even said ‘hi’ to me as if they knew who I was. They seemed to have no concept that I used to be a man. I hurried along, pushed on by the freezing wind. By the time I got to the mall my legs were frozen.

I spent the next couple of hours roaming the hallways and stores of the Andersonville Mall. I counted 27 stores in total, most of them being clothing stores that did capture my interest. I realized being turned into a young woman wasn’t that bad – in fact in many ways it was a dream come true. It was wonderful to go into a store and try on stuff that was short and sexy but still looked natural on me. While I past pretty well in public as Jenny, I never looked natural wearing a skirt or dress that hung above my knees. Now I had a body that was built for such outfits, and it was well stacked.

I looked at myself carefully in the mirror at what I had become. I now had long, beautiful blonde hair that went halfway down her back and was feathered in the front. My breasts were a C cup but due to my incredible thin waist they appeared much bigger. My legs were tan and beautiful, one of my features. And I had smile that could melt even the coldest heart. The judge had made me one sexy looking young woman.

I was enjoying myself – so much that I forgot about who I really was and why I was here. But when a young mother pass by holding the hand of a little girl who was about the age of my own daughter, I suddenly felt a pain of guilt. I had an obligation to other people outside this town. My son was depending on me to be there for his baseball games and his troubled teenage years. My precious little girl was expecting me to walk her down the isle one day. And what about my wife, who had put up with this strange, dressing hobby of mine and had been there when I was lying flat on my back in the hospital? Didn’t she deserve better than having me abandon her like this? Even if she didn’t remember me and got a new husband who made her just as happy, hadn’t I made a commitment to her on our wedding day in front of a hundred other people and God? My life was no longer my own to do with as I pleased.

I spotted a McDonald’s across the street from the Mall and realized I was getting hungry. Braving the cold air, I ran over the restaurant and ordered myself a Big Mac and Fries. It had been years since I’d eaten a Big Mac due to my heart condition and my first bite reminded me of how much I missed eating them. Too bad this meal had more fat in it than I was allowed to eat in an entire day.

As I sat there eating I began to think about how much I was enjoying this new life – maybe a little bit too much. Sure, it was great now but what would happen when something unpleasant came up – like my first period. Would I still be happy wearing skirts and dresses for the rest of my life or would I end up like Rebecca, feeling trapped in the wrong body?

"Mind if we sit down?" a voice asked. It was Dr. Green and that teenager I had seen in the Judge’s chambers. I had become so engrossed in my own thoughts that I hadn’t seen them show up.

"It’s a free country," I said in a somewhat neutral tone. The young girl sat down first and scooted over for the doctor. "How’s Rebecca doing?"

"Not bad considering. He’s with his mother right now getting acquainted to his new life. You know, I could have sworn I told you to wait outside my office until I was done with him," the doctor stated before taking a bite of what looked like a grill chicken sandwich.

"I wasn’t interested in talking doctor. I mean, what is there to talk about? I’ve been living life longer than you have so what could you possible tell me that I don’t already know?"

"How about who you are," she replied back slightly annoyed.

"I already know all that. My name is Jane Anne Harper. I live at 143 Pleasant View Drive. I’m three weeks shy of my 16^th birthday and for some reason I like dressing in outfits that aren’t convenient for the weather outside. How’s that for starters?"

"And your mothers name? Where your father works? How many brothers and sisters you have? Can you answer any of those questions?" Dr. Green asked me.

"No," I said honestly, "but then I’m not really interested in knowing those details. I don’t plan to be here that long."

"So you decided not to stay?" Dr. Green looked at me with intense eyes.

"Lets just say I’m leaning that way ‘doctor’," I replied back in a somewhat nasty tone. "By the way, who’s your friend here? We haven’t been introduced yet."

"I’m Linda Anderson," the teenage girl answered.

"So they named a town after you – how nice," I felt myself getting angry at what they had done to me and started being a little rude toward both of them. "And you’re part of all this?"

"I’m just like you," she whispered.

"A guy?" I asked suspiciously.

"We don’t ask questions like that around here Jane," the doctor answered for her. "It’s better if you don’t know. What’s important is that you try out this life so you can decide what you want to do by tomorrow morning."

"Do you really think living in this body for 24 hours is going to help me decide doctor? What it really comes down to is who gets screwed in the end – my family or my best friend. If I stay I’ll always feel guilty for abandoning my family. If I leave my best friend suffers only I won’t remember it, which should give me some comfort but it doesn’t. That’s what I have to figure out here!"

"I could help," the doctor offered in a hopeful tone.

"No thanks!" I replied back in an acid tone. "Do me a favor DOCTOR. The next time you want to help me out again – DON’T! I’m old enough to handle my own problems without you wet-nursing me along. Have you got that?"

Dr. Green frown and looked like she was going to say something else when I noticed an attractive, middle-age woman walking toward us.

"Hello Carol, Linda," the new lady said. "And Jane Harper. I didn’t expect to see one of my students here at this time of the day." I looked at the teenager in semi-confusion.

"She means you," Linda told me directly. I looked back at the lady who was staring at me with a slight smile as if she were part of an inside joke.

"I’m afraid you got me confused with someone else," I explained. "I graduated from High School years ago." I noticed all three of them were smiling at me now, making me feel just a little bit uncomfortable.

"Always the prankster, aren’t you Jane," she replied crisply. "But skipping school is a very serious matter. How would you like to be kicked off the cheerleading squad?"

"Look Miss," I started to argue. "I don’t know who you are but you’re making a big mistake. I’m not a student – I’m not even a girl. I’m a 42-year-old father of two. And I don’t know anything about this cheerleading squad you’re talking about."

The new lady seemed unimpressed and then I noticed Linda Anderson was fidgeting nervously in her chair. Apparently, I had just made a big mistake by speaking the truth.

"Have you been drinking young lady?" she demanded to know.

"What? No, but I wish I had," I told her. This was getting ridiculous. "Look, check with Judge Herns – she’ll tell you who I am."

"I got a better idea Miss Harper," the attractive woman said to me. "How does 3 days of in-school suspension and a phone call to your parents sound for trying to skip school? Because that’s what I’m going to do if you don’t come with me right now."

It was strange but even though it sounded like a threat she didn’t seem that angry. I turned Dr. Green who was sitting there silently eating her lunch with a rather amused look on her face. "Look, tell her what’s going on."

"Is she asking me for help Linda?" the doctor asked mock surprise. "I believe Jane said she could handle her own problems and didn’t want my help!"

"That’s what I thought too," Linda agreed a little smugly. I realized they had me – it was time to swallow my pride and eat a little crow.

"Okay Dr. Green, I’m sorry. You were right and I was wrong, I do need your help. I apologize for being so rude to you earlier."

"And for not listening to me when I told you to wait outside my office?" she added.

"Yes, that too," I sigh, then continued. "I’ve been a bad girl Dr. Green, alright? Now will you please help me out." The doctor beamed at her victory.

"Mrs. Miller. Jane had some business with the Judge this morning, that’s why she wasn’t in class."

"But the Judge is done with her now – correct."

"Yes," the doctor replied back with a small grin."

"Well then," Mrs. Miller smiled. "Then there’s no reason for Jane not to be in school now, is there."

"School!" I choked out. "Now wait a minute! Dr. Green, tell her what’s going on! Tell her why the Judge did this." The doctor gave me an entertaining glance.

"But Jane – she’s right. Since we don’t have anything to talk about I can’t see any reason why you shouldn’t go back to class. If you recall, that’s what the Judge ordered – to live as Jane Harper until tomorrow."

"But – but." I couldn’t think of a good argument.

"Let’s go Jane," Mrs. Miller said as she grabbed my hand. "My car is waiting right outside."

"Goodbye Jane. Have fun in school today," the doctor said pleasantly. I gave her one of my best glares, which had little affect on her. Apparently she had seen plenty of glares like mine before.

Mrs. Miller, who I later found out was the superintendent of Andersonville schools, gave me an understanding smile as we pulled out of the McDonalds parking lot. "You should be able to make your first afternoon class without any trouble," she told me.

"What class is that?" I asked glumly.

"History," she replied.

"Terrific, I hate History." For some reason Mrs. Miller found my response funny and laughed.

"Here," she said, pulling a piece of paper out of thin air. "It’s your schedule for the rest of the afternoon – along with your locker number and combination."

We pulled into the school parking lot and she parked in a spot assigned to her.

"Remember who you are Jane," she told me sternly. "I don’t want to hear about any trouble from you. I happen to be good friends with the Judge, if you know what I mean." I had a good idea what she meant. Her and the Judge were alike.

"Now go on. Your next class starts in five minutes." She walked with me until the hallway ‘T’, then I went left and she went right. Finding my locker wasn’t much trouble. I was surprise to open it up and see a picture of a guy hanging inside the doorway.

‘Oh God,’ I gasped. ‘I have a boyfriend?’

He didn’t seem bad looking; at least he had a nice smile although he could have been Mel Gibson for all I cared. The last thing I wanted was to get hooked up with a guy. The bell rang and everyone started spilling into the hallway, surrounding me. I felt myself starting to panic being around all these strangers – most of them with those twinkling eyes.

"Hey Jane, where have you been?" The guy, whose picture was hanging up in my locker, but with those funny twinkling eyes, came up and slid his hand around my thin waist pulling me close to him. I almost cringed. A girl with long, reddish hair joined us, also with twinkling eyes.

"I – I had an appointment this morning," I said.

"Nothing serious?" the redhead asked with slight concern.

‘No, I only got my gender changed,’ I wanted to scream back.

"I’m fine," was all I managed to get out before another bell rang.

"I have to get to class girls. See you later ‘fox’," the boy said to me. Before I had a chance to react he gave me a kiss and took off. I stood there in a semi-state of shock; I’d been kiss by a boy.

"I wish I could find someone like Roger," the redhead said to me. I was going to tell the girl she could have him but she grabbed my arm and started pulling me down the hallway.

"Come on, our next class starts in less than a minute and you know how Mr. Tackett is." I found myself being drawn down the hallway in utter confusion.

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

Aww, High School! What wonderful memories I have of those carefree days. Unfortunately, today’s reality didn’t match up the memories I had. I couldn’t believe how much I had once knew and then forgotten. It was a real eye-opener. Still, if I decided to stay I had something to look forward to, relearning everything again.

My new girlfriend, Sandra Smith, was in my last two classes. While she talked a lot about her social life, I sensed she took her schoolwork very seriously. I found out this was true when she started answering the questions our history teacher started putting forth to us. It was amazing and fun to watch her in action. We went to our next class, science in this case, and Sandra was pretty knowledgeable on that subject as well. Finally the last bell rang.

"I’m glad this day is over with," Sandra sighed as we put our books away in our lockers.

"Me too," I agreed. Being a teenager, male or female was rough. I had forgotten about all the rituals they had to go through.

I followed Sandra down the hallway as she continued to talk about some great guy named Steve who played on the football team. Apparently he was younger than she was and she didn’t know what to do. It turned out that dating somebody younger than you could damaged your social status at school. If my new friend hadn’t been so serious about the matter it would have been comical. When we came to the end of the hallway I froze in fright. Next to the door was a sign that read ‘Woman’s locker room.

"What’s wrong Jane?" Sandra wanted to know.

"I – I can’t," was all I got out. What could I say to here? There wasn’t any reason for me not to enter inside but somehow I felt it was wrong.

"Come on," Sandra said anxiously as she grabbed my arm and pulled me into the forbidden territory. There were already about 20 girls in inside the locker room changing, most of them in just their panties and bras. I tried not to pay attention – I felt like a dirty old man since I was old enough to be their father. I opened up my locker and started pulling out my cheerleader uniform without looking at the other girls too much. Sandra, who had already taken off her top to reveal her lacy, red bra, gave me a puzzling stare.

"What’s wrong with you Jane, you look uneasy."

"It’s nothing," I said trying to avoid her red bra that my eyes seemed to keep getting locked on to. I hadn’t seen breast that good since, well it had been a long time. I concentrated on looking straight at my locker as I got changed. There was a red and white top with the word ‘Andersonville’ printed on it that went diagonal across the chest. The skirt was short, with red and white pleated stripes running down it. A pair of red and white tennis shoes and white socks with red trim completed the outfit. As I left the locker room with Sandra I looked at myself in the mirror and was surprised how sharp I looked. I had always dreamed of being a cheerleader some day, and now I was one.

We assembled inside the gym in front of an older girl dressed in a cheerleader’s outfit like the rest of us. From the way she was standing while looking at each of us, it was clear she was one of the head cheerleaders. The name sewn on her sweater said Nancy.

"Alright girls," she spoke loudly while checking each one of us out with a critical eye. "This Friday is the big game against our arch rivals. I want to show those Peace River snobs we’re better than they are. That means I want you cheering your hearts out. Group C, up front."

I found myself being pushed forward with Sandra and 7 other young girls while realizing I didn’t have the any idea’s what routines I was suppose to be doing.

"Alright girls, let’s hit it," the head cheerleader said "T–I–G–E–R–S. What does it spell – ‘TIGERS’." Our group went into a small dance routine shaking our pom-poms, twilling around and kicking our legs out. I was totally lost after the first few seconds.

"Hold it girls! Jane, what the heck are you doing?" Nancy asked tensely. "Haven’t you been practicing like you’re suppose to?"

"I – I guess I thought were we doing something else," I muttered weakly, slightly embarrassed that every eye was now on me.

"Well get it right this time," she yelled. "Alright girls, let’s try again."

This time I was able to keep up for about 10 seconds before I turned left instead of right and ended up running into the girl next to me. Nancy was furious.

"DARN IT Jane, you’ve done this routine hundreds of time. What’s the problem?"

"Hi Nancy," someone said. The voice was familiar to me.

"Linda," the head cheerleader replied in a friendly tone. "Come back to join us?"

"I’m afraid I’m a little out of practice," she smiled.

"You’re not he only one," Nancy replied, giving me an evil eye that made me want to craw into a hole and hide.

"Care if I talk to Jane for a moment alone?" Our head cheerleader shrugged her shoulders.

"Go ahead – it can’t hurt. Alright girls, group C sit down – Group B, step up." Linda made a motion for me to follow her outside into the empty hallway.

"Having trouble I see," she stated but it wasn’t in a ‘I told you so’ tone.

"You could say that," I replied slightly upset. "How in the hell do they expect you to act normal if you don’t know what to do?"

"There’s a trick to this," Linda told me. "If you had stayed and talked to Dr. Green you would have found that out."

"Okay, I screwed up," I sighed. "Can’t you give me a break? I was upset at the time, and not just because I got turned into girl although that sure didn’t help."

Linda flashed me a comforting smile. "I know Jerry. It can push your sanity to the limits sometimes"

"You used my real name," I said with surprise. "Is that allowed?"

"No, not really. But I felt it would help you feel better," Linda answered. I realized that it had.

"So, can you tell me what this trick is?"

"It’s easy," she told me. "Just close your eyes and concentrate on what you want to do. Try it now. Think about your cheerleading routine."

I closed my eyes doubtfully and did as she said. Suddenly my mind became filled with instructions of how each cheering routine went.

"That’s incredible!" I said with a laugh, my eyes still closed.

"It helps," Linda agreed. "The only thing I knew about cheerleaders before I came here was how much I wanted to date one. It ended up that the real Linda Anderson had been a cheerleader in school, so I remembered all her routines."

"Does it work on other things?" I asked.

"Only things you’re suppose to know or do. For instance, if I want to work on my car but I’m not a mechanic then it doesn’t work."

"What about the people here – those ones with the funny eyes. What are they."

Linda sighed. "We have many names for them – shadows, ghost, holders, the most common name is temps – which is short for temporary people. Jane Harper used to be a temp until you came here. That’s what happens, we get a new person in and they get assigned to one of these temps."

"Where do all these people come from?" I asked in curiosity.

"I can’t tell you that Jerry. I want to but I can’t. What I can tell you is that the people here needed a second chance in life."

"What about my friend, Rebecca? Doesn’t she deserve that second chance?"

"I believe she does," Linda smiled. "And I think Judge Herns agrees with me."

"Did she send you?" Linda shook her head.

"No, I came on my own. I was a little concern about how you may be doing. Now I have to get back to work."

"Linda," I said softly. "Thank you for thinking of me. If I do decide to stay – will you – will you be my friend?"

She smiled sweetly and gave me a hug. "Of course Jerry. And despite what you may be feeling right now, living the rest of your life as Jane Harper won’t be so bad."

"That’s not what’s bothering me," I answered. "It’s my family. I love them Linda. And despite what the Judge has promised me, I know if I stay I’ll feel like I’m abandoning them. If it weren’t for them, I’d agree to stay so Rebecca could have her dream. But I don’t know what to do."

"You will Jerry," said Linda smiling. "By tomorrow morning you’ll know exactly what to do. Look, I’m not good at giving advice all the time but would you like some?"

"Sure." At this point I would take any help I could get.

"Don’t think about your family, or your friend, or anyone else affected by you staying. Think of this as one of those crossdressing convention trips you make every now and then to Erie, PA. – except this is the ultimate crossdressing trip. Enjoy being a girl, meeting new friends, and your parents later on tonight. Then compare it to what you’ll be giving up. I know what you’re thinking Jerry – this isn’t about what you want, it’s about your obligation to other people. But trust me, if you just concentrate on being Jane Harper until tomorrow things will be a lot clearer."

"Wait a minute – how do you know about the conventions I went to?"

"Credit card receipts," she told me. "Look, I really have to get back to the office. The Judge only gave me 30 minutes and it’s been that long already. I’ll see you later." She gave me another hug and ran off.

As I watched her go, I thought about what she had said. This was the ultimate crossdresser’s dream, to experience living life as a woman. Maybe Linda’s advice was the right thing to do. I pulled down my sweater and marched back into the gym determined to be the best damn cheerleader there.

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

It was already starting to get dark when Sandra and I left the school building. We had changed back into our regular clothes and I was cursing the cold air that went right through my thin skirt. I got in Sandra’s car – which was fine with me since I had no idea where in the hell we were going to next. She pulled out of the lot and headed toward town to a place called ‘Randy’s Palace’.

"I hope Steve’s there," Sandra bubbled. "He’s a fullback on the football team but I hear that the coach is thinking of changing him to quarterback next season. And he’s so cute, even if he is a year behind me."

 

"I can’t wait to meet him," I replied with almost the same enthusiasm.

My friend continued to babble on about her new love. Inward I smiled, remembering when I first met my wife in college and how I couldn’t get my mind off her after that. It took me three months just to get up the nerve to ask her out on a date. Three years later we were married. She had been my soul mate.

We pulled up to a large, drive-in restaurant that was buzzing with people, mostly teenagers from my school. There was a jukebox blaring out a song that I had never heard of and almost every seat and booth was crammed with teenagers talking and laughing out loud

"There he is," Sandra whispered to me in an excited tone.

"Where?" I asked.

"Right next to my brother, see."

"Which one is your brother?" She gave me a strange stare and then I realized that since Sandra was my best friend I would’ve met her brother hundreds of times before.

"Let’s go talk to them. You know, I think my brother has a small crush on you," she giggled. "To bad you’re already dating someone."

‘Yea, to bad for whom?’ I thought

There were four teenagers boys sitting in the booth, all between the ages of 14 and 16. One of them, who I guessed was her brother, grinned at me. Then I noticed the other boys were doing the same – as if we were prime beef and they were starving.

"Hi Sis," one of them said.

"Got room for us brother?" Sandra asked while smiling slightly at the boy sitting across from her brother who I figured had to be Steve Anderson.

"Sure, have a seat." They scooted over some and Sandra crammed herself next to Steve while I slid in across from her next to her brother. I noticed that Steve and Sandra’s brother were real while Sandra and the other two boys were the temps. Steve looked at me with a little surprise and made a motion with his finger toward his eyes. I nodded that I understood.

"Are you playing this weekend Steve?" Sandra asked with interest that I could tell wasn’t about the game.

"The coach says he may put me in for a few plays. Larry’s playing. He burned up the field at practice today with all his fancy moves." Sandra’s brother had a huge grin on his face.

"I always play better in snow," he said, looking over at me.

"Where’s Roger," Sandra asked.

"He had to work," Steve answered. "I guess he’s the responsible one in our group, huh Jane."

"Unlike you," someone interrupted. Linda was standing in front of the table with a slight glare on her face. "You were suppose to meet me at the Courthouse when I got off work Steve."

The boy grinned at Linda and somehow I sensed they knew each other better than just as brother and sister – more like good friends.

"Come on Linda, it’s snowing outside. You don’t want me to catch a cold, do you?"

"How would you like me to beat you up in front of your friends?" she shot back while giving him a playful wacko to the head. The other boys started kidding him about being threatened by a girl.

"She’s just jealous of my good looks and popularity," Steve teased back in good fun. He leaned farther back in the booth so Linda couldn’t hit him again.

"Right," Linda said rolling her eyes. Then she turned to me. "How’s it going Jane?"

"Fine," I answered with a smile. I noticed Steve gave his sister a funny look.

"Steve, if we don’t get home soon Mom and Dad are going to skin us alive. Let’s go.’

"I guess we need to get going too Larry," Sandra agreed as she got up reluctantly to let Steve out.

"You sure know how to ruin a good time Sis," Larry stated as he stood up. "See you guys later," he told the other two boys who returned his goodbye.

"Why don’t I drive Jane home Sandra. I have to go by her house anyway." Larry looked a little disappointed but seemed to understand.

"Okay. Give me a call tonight," Sandra said to me just before leaving. When we got outside Linda led me over to a cherry-red, hopped-up Camaro.

"This is your car?" I asked with envy. "Who do you have to know to get a car like this?"

"Dennis Butz," Steve replied from the back seat as we drove off.

"Who’s he?" I asked. Linda answered the question.

"He’s sort of like the director of this place. If you decide to stay, I’ll introduce you to him one day. For now, let’s concentrate on what important here. You’ll be meeting your parents soon – I thought I should tell you something about them."

"They’re good parents, aren’t they?" I was a little worried that maybe I had been assigned a couple of bad parents. My own parents had been very supportive of me while I was growing up.

"They’re great parents," Linda said. "Better than most of the one’s in town. Your mother is like your best friend and your biggest fan. Your father well, he still thinks of you as his little girl. Both of them are very involved in your life in a positive way."

"I don’t get it, what’s wrong with that?"

"Nothing," Linda answered with a smile. "I just thought you’d want to know, that’s all."

"Can I ask you guys something?" I said. "You both seem to know each other – I mean real well."

Steve grinned. "Linda here used to be my adopted brother. We even worked together for a while."

"It’s a long story Jerry," Linda replied going back to my male name. "Someday we’ll both tell you the entire story."

"I look forward to it," I smiled. "And please, call me Jane from now on."

Linda smiled back. "Okay Jane."

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

The rest of the evening was like living in a dream. Linda was right, my parents were wonderful. My mother seemed interested in everything I had done that day but not in a prying type of way – she really was like my best friend. To my father I was his little girl, whom he loved and respected. Being an only child in the family made me the center of their universe.

Later that night Sandra called to chat about the day’s events. It seems her brother did have a small crush on me, admitting it to his sister. It was kind of cute in a way and I was little flattered to have someone think of me that way. Then Roger called and we talked for almost 30 minutes about how his day went. By the time I hung up the phone I realized I had a lot of respect for the young man. His father had been killed two years ago and he had taken on a job after school to help support his mother and younger brother and sister. I found myself wondering if I would’ve been as responsible if put in the same situation.

Later that night I changed into an old T-shirt and pair of shorts and crawled into bed. I realized I was happy. It wasn’t that I had been unhappy before, it’s just that this life had grown on me. I drifted off into a sound sleep dreaming peaceful things.

However, sometime in the middle of the night my dreams changed from being peaceful to more intense. I saw my wife and two kids standing there in front of me. My son was proudly holding a report he had written.

"Look Dad. I got an ‘A+’ in school today. Can we go out to eat to celebrate?" My daughter held out her hands to hug me.

"I love you daddy," she said in her little girl voice. My wife was watching us, a smile plastered on her face.

"You’ve made me so very happy honey!" she told me. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you." I tried to reach out to them but something stopped me. It was Rebecca, standing right beside me holding tightly onto my arm.

"Please Jerry – I know I’m asking a lot, but please stay. I can’t re-live my life as a man again." She had such sad, pleading eyes that made me want to cry.

 

I woke up with a gasp. For a moment, I felt slightly disorientated sitting there in the strange, dark room. I touched my body and realized I hadn’t been dreaming; that I was really a girl and in a few hours I had to make a decision that would affect the lives of four people close to me. Linda had told me I would know the answer by then but the answer seemed more elusive than before. I decided to do what I always did when I needed to think. I put on some warm clothes and a heavy jacket and stepped outside in the frosty, cold morning.

It had stopped snowing and the sky was crystal clear, revealing hundreds of bright stars in the night sky. It was so beautiful to look at. I started walking to keep warm and an hour later found myself on a small hill looking down at the town. I brushed the snow off a large rock and sat down. Andersonville looked so peaceful in the freshly fallen snow and being so early in the morning there were very few house lights on.

"Up kind of early, aren’t you Miss Harper." The voice startled me and I turned to see it was Officer Merrick standing there a few feet away with a slightly concern look.

"I’m not trying to leave if that’s what you mean officer," I replied smugly.

"I didn’t say you were," he answered politely. "I just wanted to make sure everything was okay." As he turned to leave I realized that I really wanted some company.

"Officer Merrick. Can you sit down and talk with me for a little bit?" He smiled slightly at me.

"I’m not busy at the moment." He took a seat next to me and stared up at the stars in the sky. "I never get tired of looking at them."

"Me neither," I agreed. "I use to study the stars for hours when I was younger – I mean in my past life." Officer Merrick grinned but didn’t say a word. I decided to play a hunch.

"See that star over there in the east Officer Merrick? The one just coming up over the horizon?" He nodded slowly. "Well it’s not a star at all, it’s the planet Mercury. It’s known as the ‘morning star’ because unlike the other planets beside Venus, it’s only seen a couple of hours before sunrise or after sunset. A couple of months later you’ll see it in the west after sunset, only then it will be known as the ‘evening star’. That’s because Mercury and Venus have orbits between the earth and the sun.

"I’ve been told that before," the officer said in almost an uncomfortable manner. I continued to press.

"Do you know that the planet Mercury was named after a Roman God? You see, the planet Mercury circles around the sun every 88 days, which is why it changes position so quickly in the sky each night. Now in myth, the God Mercury was supposed to have been light-footed – a messenger who was extremely fast," I paused for a moment then added, "just like you Officer Merrick. Able to run a mile faster than you can blink an eye."

The cop stayed quiet for a minute while continuing to look at the planet in the sky. "I’m not that fast," he answered softly.

"I can’t believe it’s you standing there," I said quietly.

He turned to face me with a thin smiled on his face. "Why, because you thought I was just a myth?"

"No – well, okay maybe. I guess I figured if you were real you’d be doing God-like stuff, not patrolling the street of some small town."

"Andersonville is not just a some small town Miss Harper," he stated matter of factly.

"You got that right," I giggled. "Are there – anymore here? I mean, like your brothers or sisters?"

"I’m here on loan so the Andersonville police officers could be trained by our people. I – we live somewhere else." Then he stopped to give me a serious look. "No one else knows about me Miss Harper, not even Linda Anderson. You can’t tell anyone who I am. Do you understand?"

"Not why you don’t want anyone to know but, I promise not to tell anyone."

"Good," he replied and his warm smile returned. "I know this doesn’t make much sense to you but trust me, it’s better if the others don’t know about us right now. In time they’ll find out at our choosing."

"Thank you for telling me the truth, Mercury. You could have lied."

"You wouldn’t have believe me if I had," he said glancing back into the sky before straighten up. "Your parents will be waking up soon. Come on, I’ll drive you home so they won’t find you missing and worry."

We didn’t talk on the way back to my house. I had hundreds of questions I wanted to ask him but I sensed he wasn’t about to answer any of them. In a matter of minutes he had dropped me off at my house and drove off silently down the street. I watched his car disappear around the corner then sneaked back into the house.

I took a shower and got dressed in a much warmer outfit then what I had on yesterday. This time I wore a long flowered skirt and a blue sweater. I brushed my long, golden hair and applied my makeup much more sparingly than I normally did when I was a man. Of course, I didn’t need so much now. Afterwards I joined my parents for a real family breakfast. My father was an accountant at the Andersonville bank and my mother was a clerk at same dress shop I had visited when I first got here. I thought there was some irony to this but couldn’t figure out how. Just as we were finishing up breakfast there was a knock on the door. It turned out to be Linda Anderson.

"Hi Jane. You want a ride to school?"

"You bet," I replied while knowing it was just a ploy. She was really taking me to see the Judge this morning.

"Goodbye Mom, goodbye Dad." I gave them both a hug and grabbed my books.

"See you after practice honey," my mother said as I went out the door. She had such a loving smile on her face, my best friend.

Linda fired up the Camaro and we went zipping down the street toward the Courthouse. As I watched all the people going by, I thought how perfect this town was. I found myself wishing I could raise my kids in a place like this, where being nice and respectful of others was the norm and not the exception. Before I knew it, Linda was parking the car in the Courthouse lot.

"Nervous?" she asked as we walked toward the side entrance.

"Plenty," I replied.

"Do you know what you’re going to do?"

"I – I think so."

That morning, sitting on the rock talking to Officer Merrick, I had made up my mind. Although I wasn’t totally comfortable with the answer, I knew I could live with it.

When we got to Linda’s office, I didn’t have long to wait. Judge Herns greeted us at the door and motioned us to join her inside her chambers. Dr. Green was already there with Danny, who was standing next to her with pleading eyes. He knew his life depended on what I decided next. Another officer who I hadn’t met before joined us. His nametag read Sargent Williams.

"I don’t see any reason to drag this out Mr. Kohl," the Judge started. "You’ve had a chance to try out your new life, what have you decided?

"Your Honor," I said in a shaky voice. "I’ve – I’ve decided to stay." The Judge’s business-like look never left her face.

"You understand this is for life," she said firmly. "I won’t change you back."

I almost backed out when she said it was for life, but then I looked over at my friend and realized I couldn’t let her down. At least I would have the comfort of having her around me for the rest of my life.

"I understand Your Honor," I answered softly. "Can I make one small request before you do anything. It’s for my friend."

"Of course my child, what is it?" A small smile appeared on the Judges lips.

"This life – as Jane Harper is wonderful Judge. And as much as I would like to keep it, I want to give it to my friend. It’s the life she’s always dreamed about Your Honor, and I want her to have it."

"But you don’t know who I was going to change your friend into my child," Judge Herns said. "Supposing you’re not happy with the life I was going to assign him?"

"Begging your pardon Judge, but I don’t see that can be possible. From what I’ve seen, respect and happiness are abound in Andersonville. I’m willing to take that chance in exchange for letting my friend have this life."

The Judge sat back in her chair to think about my proposal for a moment. Then she sat up straight again and gave me a pleasant smile.

"I’ll honor your request my child. Danny, stand next to your friend please."

She closed her eyes and raised her hands so her palms were together. I knew what to expect and didn’t fight it this time. I saw the ball of energy/light rise out of her hands and then strike my friend. He immediately started to change – growing taller and becoming more like I currently was. I was so engrossed in watching him become me that I didn’t realize I had been hit with one of those balls of lights as well. But I could feel it working, as I started growing slightly taller.

I closed my eyes, not wanting to know what was going to happen next. I thought about my wife and kids and said a silent goodbye to them. I knew I had done the right thing even if it hadn’t been the easiest thing to do. I had saved my friend’s life. In the Bible I had once read that if anyone gave up his life for a friend he would find 'it'. I now knew what that meant.

My transformation stopped – and I felt strange. Slowly, I opened up my eyes and gazed down at my new clothes, men’s clothes. Then I realized that I was wearing a beat up brown jacket – my old jacket that I had worn into town the day before. Somehow I knew I was me again. Judge Herns saw my surprise and smiled.

"It’s simple Mr. Kohl," she said as if reading my mind. "You don’t belong here. Go home to your family." Tears of gratitude formed in my eyes.

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

Sargent Williams drove Rebecca, now Jane Harper, Linda, and myself to the city limits. Officer Merrick followed behind in another car. We all got out and I hugged my friend’s goodbye for the last time.

"I’m going to miss you Jerry," Rebecca said tearfully. "We’ve had a lot of good times over the years."

"At least you’ll remember them," I replied a little sadly. "I won’t even remember you existed when I leave. But I’m glad you were my friend. I love you Rebecca, and I’m so happy for you, I really am. Take care of yourself and have a good life."

"I will," she whispered while giving me a big hug back. "Thank you for saving me."

I turned to Linda Anderson who was also looking a little down. "I guess this is goodbye." She nodded her head silently.

"I’m happy for you Jerry," she said. "While I’m a little sad knowing I’m losing a good friend, I’m glad you got what you wanted. Take care of yourself." She gave me a hug and small kiss on the cheek

 

"You too," I responded while returning her hug. "And take care of my friend here. She’s a great person!"

I let go of Linda and turned to Officer Merrick who was standing next to the car. "I guess I’m ready sir." He smiled slightly.

"Get in the passenger side Mr. Kohl." As we drove off, I turned to get one more look at my two friends. They smiled and waved goodbye. Then we drove over a hill and they disappeared from my sight for the last time. I turned and looked out the window with tears in my eyes.

"Sad?" Officer Merrick asked me softly.

"I little," I replied. "I’m happy knowing I have my old life back and my friend finally got the life she wanted, but I’m going to miss the people I met here. Can I ask you a question Mercury, what made Judge Herns change her mind? Why did she allow me to leave while still changing Rebecca into the woman she always wanted to be?"

"Your actions," Mercury explained. "You proved to Judge Herns that you didn’t belong in Andersonville by your unselfish act. People like you are out there, but they’re becoming rarer every day."

"What would have happened if I had decided to leave?" It seems like that would have been the wrong decision.

"She would have let you go," he answered. "Judge Herns never intended to keep you in Andersonville against your will or force your friend to relive her life as a male. But I think you should know that your actions made the Judge feel good inside so she decided to reward you as well. The next time you have a stress test done on your heart your cardiologist is going to be very happy."

"Really?" I didn’t how to react. Judge Herns had given me back twenty years of my life if I kept in shape. "I wish I had known, I would have thanked her."

"That’s not her way Jerry, she believes in doing things quietly. But, I’ll let her know that you thanked her."

Something else puzzled me. "Why did she do this to me Mercury? Why did she force me to live my life as a woman for the past 24 hours?"

"The Judge turned you into Jane Harper so you could experience life as a true female. It was gift Jerry, not a punishment. She knew deep down that you’ve always wondered what it would be like to be a real woman. Now when you dream about your time in Andersonville, the experience will seem real to you, which of course it was. Your forgotten memories will come out with great clarity."

"Now I really want to thank Judge Herns," I told the cop. He nodded and continued to drive.

"I do have one major regret about leaving Andersonville." I turned and gave the officer a serious look. "I’m going to miss our early morning chats."

Officer Merrick turned and grinned. "Believe it or not Jerry, I feel the same way." He pulled the police car off to the side of the road behind my truck. "Time for you to hit the road Jerry."

He opened up the truck door and got in behind the wheel. "Thanks for everything Mercury. I hope we’ll meet again someday."

He chuckled under his breath. "Who knows, that could happen. By the way, what’s that on your head." He touched my forehead and I passed out.

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

I must have been dreaming, I heard a pounding on my door. Then I heard a voice.

"Sir, are you alright. Do you need help?"

I stirred myself awake and realized I had fallen asleep in my truck. There was a man outside my window who was looking at me with great concern. Slowly I regained my senses and rolled the window down.

"Are you okay?" the man asked. "I saw you parked outside my house and thought maybe you were sick or needed help.

"Yea, I’m okay. Just tired from all this driving." I stretched my body to wake up. It was stupid of me to take such a long trip alone. I must have been real tired when I stopped because I didn’t remember parking across from the white farmhouse. Then again, I didn’t remember pulling over either.

"Want me to get you a cup of coffee?" the man offered.

"No thanks, I’m feeling more awake now. How do I get to the main highway from here? I’m heading back to Indiana."

"Go down this road and turn left when it dead ends into another road. Then keep driving until you hit the interstate. You can’t miss it, it’s well marked."

"Thanks," I said. "By the way, where does this road that I’m parked on go to."

"No where anymore," the farmer said. "Used to be a strip mine about 10 years ago but now it’s just a empty hole in the ground."

"Too bad," I said starting up my truck. "Thanks for your help and concern."

"No problem" the farmer replied as he turned and started walking back toward the house.

I put the truck in gear and drove off in a hurry. For some reason, I had a deep desire inside me to get home and hug my family. Soon the road I had been parked on was just a distant memory.

Fade out…

 

 

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