"Brad, Mark changed in school again."
Brad glared at Mark across the supper table. "How many times have I warned you about that? Do you want to see us driven from our home? Your mother certainly won't appreciate that, should it happen."
"I didn't mean to, Dad. Besides, I didn't get caught!"
"Oh, is that so? Well, if you didn't get caught, how come your mother just told me that you changed in school?"
"Uh, because I told her. She wanted to know why I was home early," Mark stammered.
Brad glanced over at Sherry. "Would one of you give me the entire story instead of in bite-sized chunks?"
"I told Mom that I was home early because I was suspended from school."
"Why?" Brad asked.
"Because I stole and destroyed a videotape. But I had to, Dad. "
"There's never any reason for you to steal! Don't I see to it that you have what you need? Don't I try to even get you things that you want?"
"Dad, it was necessary. The hallway security camera caught me changing. I had to break into the closet for that tape and destroy it so no one would know that we're changelings. I never would have stolen or broken anyone's property if the circumstances hadn't been so critical."
Brad gazed thoughtfully at Mark for a few moments. "How long are you on suspension?"
"Two weeks and you'll have to visit with the principal before I can return. I guess they'll want you to pay for the stuff I destroyed."
"Stuff? You destroyed more than the tape?"
"Well, I had to break into the locked closet to get the tape. They're blaming that on me even though they don't have any proof. You wouldn't believe the grilling I got over where I hid my burglary tools."
"Burglary tools?" Brad asked.
"Yeah, they thought I used tools to break in. I couldn't tell them that I temporarily changed into an elephant and used my tusks to pry open the door vent. I was real careful, too, about making sure that no one saw me change that time."
"I believe him, Brad," Sherry said.
Brad sighed. "I'm not disputing his word now that this is all becoming more clear to me. Since the circumstances are rather unfortunate, I'm not going to become upset over how he resolved his situation. However, I'm still concerned about why an incident even took place to begin with. Haven't your mother and I reminded you often enough that you're not to change into anything when you're in public?"
A dour look on his face, Mark nodded.
"It wasn't all his fault. You should have prepared him better," Sherry said.
"Oh? Why not? I mean, why is it my fault now?" Brad asked as he turned his attention to Sherry.
"He wouldn't have changed into a flea if you would have taught him better how to control his raging hormones. He's a teenager now. You know as well as I that he's even more susceptible now to any women who might be around him."
"You've lost me now. Maybe I'm missing something. However, if Mark was around some woman when he changed into a flea, then there wasn't any need to break into the security closet. Right?" Brad asked.
"I was alone at the time, Dad. It was just rotten luck that I happened to open the envelope that Misty gave me while I was standing in front of one of the security cameras," Mark said.
"An envelope caused this?" Brad asked as Mark pulled an envelope from between the pages of one of his textbooks and handed it across the table. Brad accepted the envelope and peeked inside. Almost immediately, he struggled with his body to keep from changing into one of many forms he was capable of imitating. "I can't believe that a woman gave you this! It's no wonder you changed into a huge, horny flea. What kind of values do these kids have these days?"
"Angela's a very nice girl from a good home. Really," Mark said.
"Misty's her sister and shares a class with Mark," Sherry added.
"Mark, if this is a picture of Angela without any clothes on, then how can you say that Angela's a nice girl?" Brad exclaimed.
"Dad, Angela really is nice, but she's a nudist because her family raised her that way. Everyone in her family is a nudist and they all have high moral standards. You should have seen Angela fuss at me for destroying that tape until I explained that I'd looked at her picture in front of the camera before I realized where I was."
"You're falling in love with someone who's not a changeling?" Brad asked.
Mark avoided eye contact with his father. He briefly stared down at the table as if that would make the question go away.
"What's so wrong with Mark caring about others from outside? You married me and I'm not a changeling," Sherry asked.
"I'm not saying that it's wrong. It's just that he's still so young. He just doesn't have any idea how difficult it is making a living without anyone finding out what he is. I figured he'd have fewer problems marrying within our kind. Why else do you think I've been seeing to it that he met some nice changeling girls? At least his life mate would then understand the consequences better. There are only so many communities where we can live without people fearing or trying to harm us should they find out our real identities," Brad replied.
"I was hoping to live around here and follow in your footsteps as a Hollywood monster, Dad. After all, you can't play all the monsters in the movies and you are getting up there in age now."
"Enough about how old I am. I can still play a good monster. If you're that interested in following in my footprints, I guess I can introduce you to some influential people after you graduate. However, if you're also serious about this Angela, then I can see that we'll need to have a serious chat about how to break the news to her about you. Do you think she'll understand without falling apart?"
"Well, she's pretty open-minded about everyone, Dad. I don't think it will bother her too much that I can change into other shapes."
"If you need some support when you tell her, invite her over for dinner. Then when you break the news to her, I can tell her about how exciting it can be in bed with a changeling. One thing for certain, it's never boring," Sherry said.
"A nudist, huh? I'll bet she never even suspected that you've been naked your entire life. She's certainly in for a surprise when she finds out that your clothes have always been a part of you," Brad said.
"Except for when Mark wore diapers," Sherry said.
"You want me to invite Angela over for dinner?" Mark asked.
"If you're getting serious about her, then you should," Brad replied.
"Absolutely, Mark. Do we have to undress when she comes over?" Sherry asked.
"No, Mom. Angela wears clothes except when she's at home or with her family at a club they belong to."
"That brings up an interesting point, though. Will she want you to join her club?" Brad asked.
Mark stammered, "Uh, I hadn't thought about that."
"What's there to think about.? Plenty of people have seen you running around naked before. You could join her club," Sherry said.
"People might have seen me naked, but they still thought I was wearing clothes."
Sherry shook her head. "Are you trying to tell me that you weren't totally naked when you imitated that Saint Bernard and ran across the street to pee on Mrs. Griselda's flower bed after she paid you less than you agreed on for weeding it?"
"That doesn't count. She didn't know that it was me she was seeing."
Brad snickered loudly. "I'll never forget the look on her face when you raised up onto her leg afterwards. I thought you were going to really embarrass her instead of just leaving muddy paw prints on her."
"Well, I would have if I'd known more about the facts of life then," Mark said.
Sherry snickered along with Brad as each pictured how it would have looked or how Mrs. Griselda might have reacted.
"She probably would have freaked out for sure if I had given her a big sloppy kiss with a lot of dog tongue," Mark said.
Sherry laughed some more before gaining control of her senses. "Go ahead and invite Angela over for dinner. Tell her whatever you have to in order to get her acceptance. She can even undress here if that will put her at ease while you demonstrate to her that you've always been naked since you got out of diapers. She just might be a good partner for you in life. Whatever happens, she won't receive any criticism from your father or me."
"What?" exclaimed Brad.
"You'll be on your best behavior if Angela accepts Mark's dinner invitation. After all, she's a good girl like Mark stated. She wasn't willing to put up with his destruction of other people's property. That's pretty well brought up in my book. As far as her being a nudist, that's not so bad considering you and Mark are always naked. At least she wears real clothes part of the time. Besides, what's not to like about marrying a changeling? After all, she'll have fewer clothes in the wash and more money to spend on other things. Probably fewer than I have to wash since she won't wear any at home. That's without mentioning the other benefits. Also, I want you to set aside some time to speak with Mark's principal tomorrow."
Brad nodded. He knew already who really wore the pants in his family.
}|{ the end }|{
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