night of the living bodyswitch
Stephen woke with a vague sense of unease on Friday morning. The ceiling of his hut seemed different somehow, and he could hear the sounds of other sleepers' quiet breathing from somewhere nearby. Had he been drugged and kidnapped? Had he "disappeared" from the island and gone to wherever the vanished islanders went? He was certainly not back on the Surprise - the air was still tropical, and he could hear familiar birds outside the window - but perhaps at the very least he was back in his own time.
Perhaps Jack was here.
It was not till he rose from his bed that he realized what had happened. The floor seemed further away, his balance strange and uncertain; long brown hair was tangled around his shoulders. "Jesus, Mary, and Joseph," he muttered aloud when he looked down at himself.
He was young, tall, shapely, long-haired, and most definitely female. Clearly he was still on the island, and this was one of the "Odd Weekends" of which Miss Sciuto had told him. He had not guessed how very odd it they were, however. He stared down at himself for a long time, trying to fathom why the island would play such a bizarre prank on him. Perhaps it was merely another indication of the island's perverse sense of humor. If Miss Sciuto had spoken truly, and he had no reason to doubt her, most of the other islanders were in the same situation, but it would all pass by the end of the weekend. In the meantime, he supposed he would just have to make do. Indeed, it might even be quite enlightening.
As he was obviously in someone else's home, he guessed that he had been somehow transplanted into another islander's body rather than being transformed himself. The person was from the 21st century, judging by her peculiar clothing. He could not fathom the very odd undergarments and so ignored them, but he did manage to clothe himself in a reasonably modest skirt and a flowered blouse, keeping his eyes averted all the while - he supposed that whoever this body belonged to would probably not appreciate being ogled naked by a strange man (although you never knew with women nowadays).
Then he donned a pair of sandals and set off for his hut and then the compound, hoping to find the original possessor of this body, and hoping also to track down wherever his own body might have gone.
Perhaps Jack was here.
It was not till he rose from his bed that he realized what had happened. The floor seemed further away, his balance strange and uncertain; long brown hair was tangled around his shoulders. "Jesus, Mary, and Joseph," he muttered aloud when he looked down at himself.
He was young, tall, shapely, long-haired, and most definitely female. Clearly he was still on the island, and this was one of the "Odd Weekends" of which Miss Sciuto had told him. He had not guessed how very odd it they were, however. He stared down at himself for a long time, trying to fathom why the island would play such a bizarre prank on him. Perhaps it was merely another indication of the island's perverse sense of humor. If Miss Sciuto had spoken truly, and he had no reason to doubt her, most of the other islanders were in the same situation, but it would all pass by the end of the weekend. In the meantime, he supposed he would just have to make do. Indeed, it might even be quite enlightening.
As he was obviously in someone else's home, he guessed that he had been somehow transplanted into another islander's body rather than being transformed himself. The person was from the 21st century, judging by her peculiar clothing. He could not fathom the very odd undergarments and so ignored them, but he did manage to clothe himself in a reasonably modest skirt and a flowered blouse, keeping his eyes averted all the while - he supposed that whoever this body belonged to would probably not appreciate being ogled naked by a strange man (although you never knew with women nowadays).
Then he donned a pair of sandals and set off for his hut and then the compound, hoping to find the original possessor of this body, and hoping also to track down wherever his own body might have gone.