Secrets 3: The Road to the Future

When we woke up on Saturday morning, Devin and I chatted as we walked to the dining hall for breakfast.

"Do you think there will be any repercussions from Friday night?" I asked.

"I suppose it depends of what type of repercussions you're talking about.  I imagine we'll probably hear some comments about our costumes, and possibly even get some ribbing as well, although I'm not sure how many people we know would have been there."

"You could be right about that, because I don't think many of the guys taking our majors are prime material for fraternities.  Most of the frats tend to focus on the jocks and really sociable undergraduates and aren't inclined to recruit studious geeks into their houses, but it doesn't mean everyone in our majors is a geek."

"That's true, because Beta Theta Pi made us honorary members."

"Uh, we might still be studious geeks, but that's beside the point.  If you're asking if we exposed enough clues that others might have picked up on to figure out our secret, I'm not sure.  I've thought about that ever since we returned to the house and I haven't come up with an answer yet.  The only thing I'm sure about is that Gramps and Pops are going to chew us out royally if they hear about what we did."

"Yeah, I concluded that as well," Devin replied, "so I'm praying they don't learn about the Halloween contest.  If we're lucky and they don't hear about it, then we'll just use this lapse in judgment as a valuable learning experience."

"If you remember, that's what you said when they chewed you out during our freshman year when you transitioned multiple times, including when you transitioned into Big Foot.  Now we've gone and done it again."

"Well, I doubt anyone who knew us back then will remember those stunts, so hopefully we'll get through this incident unscathed as well."

"I certainly hope so."

Our conversation ended when we reached the dining hall, because there were a lot more people around and we definitely didn't want to be overheard.  We merely went inside and made our way through the line to get our breakfast, and then we found a place to sit down and eat.  We ate quickly, because we wanted to go to the dog park, but it didn't work out as we'd planned.

"Hey, you guys looked incredible at the Halloween contest," one of the guys we sat with at the football games stated.

"You were there?" Devin asked, totally shocked.

"No, but the video of the winners in each category is up on the college website."

"It is?" I followed.

"Yes, the headline is "The Greek Council's Halloween Contest is a Huge Success, and they took a video of each category winner, along with the Grand Prize winner, so I got to see you twice."

"Damn, we didn't think it was going to draw so much attention and we hoped we wouldn't be recognized."

"It wasn't that difficult, even if you made really cute girls, and I chatted with my other friends and they all saw you too, and they all think you guys made great looking cheerleaders too.  Some even hinted that they wanted to ask you out on a date."

"Tell them we're honored, but we're sorry, because we're both taken," I replied,

"Awww, that's too bad."

As soon as we finished eating, we walked back to the house, got in the SUV, and drove over to the dog park, and during the ride I made a comment.  "Damn, I hope Preston didn't see that video," but Devin couldn't respond, since he'd already transitioned.

When we arrived at the dog park, Preston and Bailey were there waiting for us, so I got out, let Bear out of the back, and we walked over to meet them.

"I didn't know you and Michael belong to a fraternity," Preston said in greeting.

"Uh, we don't actually.  We're just honorary members, since they're going to take over the toy drive after we graduate.  So, you were there last night?"

"Yes, I didn't have anything else to do, so I decided to go and check out the costumes.  I actually didn't realize it was you and Michael dressed up as cheerleaders at first, because you did such a great job with the costumes and your makeup.  I'll admit that initially I thought it was two female students from one of the sororities."

"Yeah, a lot of people told us that."

"In fact, if I didn't know better, I would have thought you two were some sort of shapeshifters."

I was stunned by his comment and hoped my reaction didn't give me away.  His power of observation is extremely well developed and he's very open-minded to even consider such an idea, so I hope he doesn't become a threat.

"Come on, there aren't any such things as shapeshifters.  Right?"

"I wouldn't exactly say that, because my academic background has taught me not to dismiss such ideas so quickly.  History is full of stories about humans who are capable of changing into animals and other humans, as well as animals that are capable of changing into humans.  I find it hard to believe that cultures from all around the world would have developed those same fantastical ideas independently without their stories having some basis in truth."

"What do you mean?"

"It's just that many ancient cultures told stories that their gods were able to change into different creatures or even other individuals.  For example, the Greeks claimed that Zeus changed into a swan before he made love to Leda, and the Norse god Loki is known as the trickster god because he could take on so many different forms.  According to the legend, Loki appeared as a mare, a salmon, a fly, an elderly woman, and even a spider-like creature, and they weren't the only ones it was claimed that could do those things."

"I didn't know that."

"The Celts told stories of Morrigan, a shapeshifting warrior goddess who could change into other women of any age, an animal, or a bird.  Those living in the British Isles told stories of Merlin, or Myrddin in Welsh, who was capable of taking on many different forms.  He was also capable of transforming his pupil, the young Arthur, into a fish, a hawk, an ant, a goose, and a badger.  Shapeshifters also appear throughout ancient literature, including the Iliad and the Epic of Gilgamesh."

"So, it's mostly just a European thing?"

"Oh, no!  Chinese mythology contains stories of animals that could shape shift into humans and the Arabians have the Jinn, also known as Jinni or genies, and those are supernatural beings that could take on human form.  Different animals are supposed to be able to change into other animals as well.  The coyote is allegedly able to shapeshift into other animals, and it does it either to cause or get out of trouble, and the raven is believed by some indigenous cultures to be able to shapeshift as well.  It's said that the raven was able to shapeshift into a pine needle so it could impregnate a chief's daughter, and it also shapeshifted into different forms to release the sun from a box."

"I'd never heard those things before."

"And that's not all.  Mesoamericans, such as the Mayans and Aztecs, had the Naguals that were human, but they could take the shape of animals, such as a jaguar.  Other Native American tribes tell stories about people who could take animal form, and this includes the Navajo skinwalkers that were believed to be witches that could either possess animals or change into one.  And those are just a few of the examples I could cite, because there are many more.  In fact, nearly every country in the world still tells stories about shapeshifters, and since these stories are so plentiful and prevalent, there must be at least some truth behind those tales."

"It seems strange, but I guess it might be possible, and you would know about such things, since you're an anthropology professor."

"Yes, that is my bailiwick, in a manner of speaking.  So, when did the fraternity make you and Michael honorary members?"

"They did it earlier this semester, when Mac and I went looking to see if one of the fraternities or sororities would serve as our contact with the other houses on Greek row.  We felt it would be more effective if one of them urged the other fraternities and sororities to contribute money and presents for our Christmas visit to the children's ward at the hospital.  We were also hoping to talk the members of one of the fraternities or sororities into taking over the project after we graduate, and Beta Theta Pi was interested in the idea.  They had one catch though, and that was we become members and participate in an activity where we represented the fraternity."

"That was clever of them, and I'd forgotten that you and Michael did the Christmas toy drive as well.  Even if the fraternity takes over the job from you, won't they have a problem?  Where are they going to come up with a Santa Claus as good or as convincing as the one you've used?"

"That's Mac's grandfather and he's already agreed to keep doing it, if we can find someone else to take over for us."

Although I was continuing this conversation with Preston, to tell you the truth, I hate having these types of discussions, because I have to remember to talk like I'm Devin and refer to myself in the third person.  It can get very confusing and I'm always afraid that I'll slip up, so as much as possible, I refer to myself in the royal plural, we or us.  In fact, that might be exactly what Preston is waiting for, one of us to slip up and make a mistake that he can use against us later.

"But Michael's grandfather must be pretty old already, so how long will he be able to continue doing it?"

"Actually, he's only in his late sixties and he feels that he's got at least ten or twenty more years that he can keep playing Santa.  I'm told that his mother's family is blessed with really good genes and there are a string of family members that have lived into their 90s, and a few have even reached 100 or more."

"That's great, but I would have guessed he was older than that.  I mean, he looks so much like Santa and it didn't appear that he was using makeup or other aids to do it."

"Yeah, that's actually what he looks like.  Mac says that he turned prematurely gray in his late thirties, although I prefer to say he turned prematurely white, because his hair and beard look white to me.  Mac says that turning gray early is a trait that also runs in the family."

"Ah, that would explain it then.  I suppose it's a fair exchange to appear older, as long as you get longevity in return."

"Yeah, and Mac says his grandfather has never let it bother him that he looks older, probably because he loves playing Santa so much."

"You mean he's done this before he started doing it with you and Michael?"

"Yes, I was told that he's done it for other groups, and Mac says kids are always coming up to him whenever they see him on the street or in a store to ask if he's really Santa Claus."

"How cute, then I hope the frat continues the routine that you and Michael started."

"Yeah, we do too."

Devin, or maybe I should say Bear, stayed around and listened to some of our conversation at first, but he left and went off with Bailey when he realized Preston wasn't going to be a problem.  Bailey was really comical, because she kept nudging Bear in an attempt to get him to go off with her.  It seemed that she couldn't understand why he was hanging back and was visibly upset at first, but she eventually got him to do what she wanted and was thrilled when he was finally ready to go play.

I watched as Bear and Bailey raced around as Preston continued to ask me more questions about last night.  When we finally finished our conversation about the fraternity and the Christmas drive, he wanted to know how Devin and I had transformed ourselves for the contest.

"You were both really cute and realistic looking girls, and you might be embarrassed when I tell you this," he stated, "but you and Michael both have great legs.  How did you get them to look so smooth?"

"We shaved them first, and then Mac had us use Nair after that.  He told me that his mom uses Nair on her legs every now and then, and we used it on our arms as well, because we had to get rid of the hair in both areas."

He quickly glanced at my arms, so I was very glad that Devin and I had made certain they looked the same as the previous night when we woke up this morning.  That's because we knew it would take a few days before the hair would naturally grow out again, and we agreed to make the adjustment gradually.  That's when I noticed Preston had let his gaze fall to my legs, but I was wearing jeans so he couldn't see them.

"I'm glad it's cool enough that nobody thinks twice about me wearing jeans," I joked.  "Although a lot of the other guys are still wearing shorts, I'm certain they and others would have noticed my legs more than my arms if I was wearing shorts today."

"Yes, you're probably right about that."

Preston also wanted to know how we acquired the cheerleader outfits and all of the other things we'd used to make ourselves look the part.  I told him that we had borrowed the uniforms from the cheerleading coach and purchased the remaining items online, but I didn't tell him how we'd actually accomplished the other touches.  I merely told him the same things that we'd told the other people about tucking, using padding, and wearing bikinis under the uniforms to disguise other parts of our anatomy.  He was intrigued and said we did a great job, and then he reiterated that at first, he'd actually thought we were females.

When Bear got tired of playing with Bailey, he came over and nudged my leg.

"You're right, Bear.  We should be leaving, because I've got studying to do.  Goodbye, Preston and Bailey.  We'll see both of you again on Monday."

Bear followed me out to the SUV and I let him jump in the back seat, and then I drove out of the parking lot and headed back to the house.  Devin quickly transitioned and started to get dressed, but I had to wait before I could transition.  I wanted to get somewhere that people wouldn't be able to see what I was doing, so I took a different route home through areas that were less busy at this time of day.  I ended up transitioning as I was driving past the football stadium, because there wasn't a game today â€" it was the team's bye week.

Along the way, Devin began asking me questions.  "I heard some of the things Preston was saying to you, so do you think he's going to be a problem?"

"I'm not sure if he is just curious or if he's going to be a threat.  He's the first person who's mentioned shapeshifters to me, although I'm not exactly sure why he brought it up.  It may have just been his way of letting me know what a good job we'd done, but then again, he could be hinting that we might really be shapeshifters."

"I think we're going to have to be careful when we're around him."

"Yes, I agree with you, but he hasn't actually made any accusations.  It's just like he's saying we did such a fantastic job that someone may think we're shapeshifters."

"Just the same, be careful what you say when you're with him."

"Yeah, I've been doing that already and plan to continue.  Damn, why did he have to be there last night?"

"I don't know, but I'm certain it wasn't because he knew we were going to be at the Halloween contest.  It had to be just a coincidence."

"I suppose you're right, but I can't help thinking about some movies and TV shows that I've seen before.  In them, one of the characters would say, 'I don't believe in coincidences', or 'there's no such thing as a coincidence,' so I'm hoping they're wrong and that's exactly what it was."

"Yeah, me too."

****

On Sunday, Preston mentioned the Halloween Contest to me, since he wanted to see if Devin and I shared the same viewpoint about what had happened.  And as soon as our stories matched up, even though I'd made certain they were slightly different and not identical, he seemed satisfied and didn't ask any more questions about it.

Devin and I talked more about what Preston had to say, and I suspect we could have kept on rehashing all of this, but there's one thing that wasn't going to change.  It had been an interesting, yet potentially terrifying weekend.

The first couple of days that week were filled with other students telling us what a fantastic job we'd done at the Halloween contest, and we also got some mild ribbing.  A few guys even jokingly asked us out on dates, but after the novelty wore off, the rest of the week was fairly quiet and hardly anyone asked anything about it again.

Preston never mentioned the contest again either and had obviously said everything he intended to on the matter.  Since he never brought it up again, it helped to reinforce the idea that he never had a hidden agenda behind his initial comments and questions.  It suggested he was only sating his curiosity instead, and for that reason we, either me or me playing Devin, weren't going to allude to it either.

This weekend was also the UNLV game, and Gramps and Pops were at the house when we returned from our classes on Friday night.  After we greeted them warmly, we chatted briefly about the weather and the upcoming game.

"I never know what to think about the team and how they'll play on any given Saturday," Gramps opined.  "After losing their first game of the season, they won the next four, and then they lost to San Diego State before winning the next three games.  I hope they continue the winning streak, but who know how this game is going to play out."

"Let's remain optimistic," Devin urged.

"Yes, of course that would be the best thing to do," Pops concurred.  "We certainly don't want to jinx them by going to the game and giving off negative vibes."

"Of course we're going to take you out to eat," Gramps stated, "but what do you think about seeing a movie after we finish eating?"

"Damn, we haven't been to a movie in ages," Devin replied.

"We wouldn't even have any idea about what might be in the theaters," I added.

"The new Mission Impossible movie should be playing, and that series is always good for a lot of action."

"Yeah, sounds good," we agreed, so I looked it up on my phone.  "Yeah, "Mission: Impossible â€" The Final Reckoning" is playing at the AMC theater."

"Great, so what type of meal are you up for tonight?"

"Whatever you're up for," Devin replied, "because whatever it is, it will be a step up from the dining hall food.  I mean, the dining hall food isn't bad, it's just that the restaurants you take us to are always better."

"Then let's go to the steakhouse.  We all like going there," Pops suggested.

"Yeah, that sounds great.

Things had been going really well for us, and then a week and a half before the fall break was to begin, Preston broached another subject while we were at the dog park.

"Are you and Michael going home over the fall break so you can spend Thanksgiving with your families?"

"Yes, we are!  I'm having some minor surgery on the Friday before Thanksgiving, and then we're heading home on Saturday.  Our families will be celebrating Thanksgiving together again, as they've done for the past few years."

"That's nice, and I'm glad to hear that your families get along so well."

"What are you going to do for Thanksgiving."

There was a few moments of awkward silence before Preston finally answered.  "There's a restaurant that's not far from here and it offers a wonderful meal on Thanksgiving, at least that's what some other faculty members from my department have told me.  They also told me that they would have invited me to join them, but they'll all be out of town visiting their families, so they suggested I go there, because they knew I'd be alone."

"Aren't you going to be with your family?"

"I no longer have a family to celebrate Thanksgiving with.  I'm an only child and my parents were killed in a horrific traffic accident a few years ago.  I have no other living relatives either, so I was thinking that if you and Michael were staying in town that you might have dinner with me at the restaurant.  I'd pay for it, of course, but I'd definitely prefer not to be alone on that day, because it tends to reminds me about when my parents were alive and it makes me really sad."

"Damn, I'm sorry to hear that," Devin replied.  "So, don't you have any aunts, uncles, or cousins that you could spend the day with?"

"No, none of my grandparents are alive and my mom was an only child.  My dad had a brother, but he died of leukemia when he was a teenager."

"That's so sad.  I'm sure Michael would have invited you to come spend Thanksgiving with our families, but there's already going to be a house full with both of our families there.  Aren't there other faculty members that will be spending the holiday in town."

"Yes, a few, but they're having other family joining them and I'd feel out of place in a large gathering like that.  I appreciate that you and Michael would have thought about inviting me to your celebration, but with such a large group, I would have felt out of place there as well."

His story was tugging at my heartstrings and I didn't want him to be alone on Thanksgiving, but I didn't know what else to say."

"Look, Michael and I are coming back on Friday and we're planning on fixing a Thanksgiving meal for a father and his son we met on vacation.  The guy's wife died a couple of years ago, and they don't have any other relatives either.  Since they were coming up to watch the football game with us on Saturday, we decided to invite them to come a day earlier and we'd prepare a Thanksgiving meal that we could enjoy together.  However, rather than fixing a whole turkey, we're just going to cook a frozen turkey breast, but we'll have all the other trimmings with it.  So, why don't you plan on joining us on Friday, if it doesn't bother you celebrating the holiday a day late.  We'll be eating at 7:00."

"That's thoughtful of you to offer, but I wouldn't want to interfere with your time with your friends."

"You wouldn't be, and I'm sure they won't mind either.  Lonny is probably about your age, and his son, Clint, is thirteen, and they're both very outgoing and like to meet new people."

"You really don't think they'd mind me butting in?"

"Hell, no.  They'd probably both be very happy to meet you."

"Ok, that works for me and I'm grateful that you're inviting me to join you.  I'll still go to the restaurant on Thursday, but it won't seem so bad, since I know I'll be celebrating with you and your friends the following day."

"I'm glad to hear that, so we'll shop for the things we need before we head home to spend time with our families."

"Just keep the grocery slip and I'll reimburse you for everything.  It's the least I can do, since you two will be going to all the trouble of coming back early and fixing everything.  Would you mind if I brought Bailey with me."

"No, that will be fine, and I'm sure Clint will love to meet her, but Bear won't be there, though, because he'll be with his owner.  And if you don't mind me asking, what have you been doing on Thanksgiving since your parents died?"

"I'd either celebrate Thanksgiving with friends or a co-worker, but I tend to feel uncomfortable when I'm with a co-worker's family, since I usually don't know anyone besides my co-worker.  It also makes me feel like a charity case while I'm there with them.  At least when I'm having Thanksgiving with friends, I usually know more than just one person when I arrive, but they're all getting married and celebrating with their families now too."

"That makes sense.  Shortly after that I said goodbye and Bear and I walked away.

I let Bear get into the backseat of the SUV, but I didn't say anything to him about what Preston and I had talked about.  I wanted him to be in his own body first, before I brought it up.

"Was something going on between you and Preston?" he asked.  "I got the feeling that the two of you were having a very serious discussion before we left today?"

"Yeah, we were."

I then quickly explained what Preston and I had been discussing while Bear had been off frolicking with Bailey.  I also told him that Preston would be alone for Thanksgiving, and I didn't think Lonny or Clint would mind, so I invited him to join us.

"That's fine, and I'm sure having one more won't be a big deal."

"Is there any reason why I shouldn't have invited him?"

"No, it just makes me sad that they'll all be spending Thanksgiving alone, even though we'll be doing this for them on Friday."

"You don't think Preston brought it up because he thought if he had Thanksgiving with us that he might be able to pick up on other clues or information about us?  Maybe now he feels we'll be focused on Lonny and Clint, so he might still be able to pick up clues about us,"

"No, I could tell he was really sad when he asked if we'd be going home for Thanksgiving.  He was even going to pay for our meals if we were going to be in Fort Collins and would have Thanksgiving with him at the restaurant.  He's also offered to pay for everything we purchase for our Friday Thanksgiving as well."

"Ok, I just thought he might be hoping to gain other information from us."

"Like what?"

"Like maybe he's planning on coyly asking obtuse questions in hopes of getting us to let down our guard and slip up when responding, since he won't be the only one there."

"And why would he do that?"

"In order to discover if we're actually shapeshifters."

"Do you really think he's still trying to do that?"

"I don't want to think that, but I'm not really sure, so we'll have to be prepared, just in case he tries that.  I was thinking that he might try to catch us off guard by asking us a question like that when we're chatting with Lonny and Clint."

"Ok, then we'll just have to be on high alert, but I don't think he'll be doing that.  So, are you ok with going ahead with this?"

"Yes, it's fine with me."

When we reached the house, we grabbed what we needed for our classes and parted ways.  After our last classes ended, we met up again and headed over to the dining hall for supper.  Once we got our meals and were sitting at a table, I mentioned something else to him.

"The dining halls are going to be closed over fall break so we'll have to figure out what we're going to do for our other meals during that time, because they won't open again until Sunday.  Do you think we should eat out or fix something at the house?"

"It's too expensive to eat out all the time, so let's fix our meals at the house."

"Ok, then we'll have to go shopping before Friday and pick up the non-perishables.  I'll make a grocery list tonight, and then we can go shopping tomorrow after our last class ends.  We can pick up the perishables we'll need when we return the following Friday"

"That's fine with me."

The next day was uneventful, and when we met up with Preston and Bailey on Wednesday morning, I told Preston what we'd decided.  "Michael and I are looking forward to having Thanksgiving at our house with you, Lonny, and Clint on Friday."

"Did you do your grocery shopping yet?"

"No, not yet.  We're going to do that tomorrow."

"Ok, and when you have the receipt, just give it to me on Friday, so I can reimburse you for everything."

"We won't be here on Friday, because Devin is going in for an operation and I'll be taking him to the hospital."

"Oh, that's right.  I forgot all about that, so when can I reimburse you for what you've spent."

"You don't really have to do that, since there will be others with us as well."

"I don't care.  I still want to pay for everything."


"Ok, then you can do it a week from Friday after we have our Thanksgiving celebration.  That way you'll have a chance to determine if it was worth paying for the things we'd purchase."

"The company alone will be worth whatever it costs and the meal will merely be a bonus."

"I hope you still feel that way after we've eaten," I joked, and Preston snickered at my comment.

"I doubt that I'll change my mind, since you and Michael are going out of your way to do this for me."

"We hope not, but at least you'll have the option," I teased.

When Bear and I left there, I said goodbye to Preston and Bailey, because it would be over a week before we'd be seeing them next.  Then, I hurried Bear out to the SUV so we could transition on the way back to the house, and then we cleaned up quickly before heading to our first classes of the day.