Always the bridesmaid.
BY Apollo

Young Billy Lorenz waited out of sight of the shopkeeper at the back of the DIY store. For three months now he had been saving up for a camping knife that he was now about to steel. He would have had enough money to buy it the previous Saturday if he hadn't kicked his stupid football through his next door neighbours patio window. His saving had now been used to help replace it. Now the only way he had of getting the knife in time for summer camp was to use five finger discount, something had had done many times before even though he was only twelve years old.

Billy saw his chance approaching. A middle aged guy was walking up to the counter at the front of the store with an arm full of grown up stuff. Billy knew that he would not get a better chance before the shopkeeper noticed him hanging around. As the customer dropped his goods on the counter Billy reached up and pulled the knife of its hook. This was to easy he thought. He was just sliding it into the inside pocket of his jacket when he heard the shopkeeper shout at him.

Startled, Billy ran towards the entrance of the store to get out of the store. The shopkeeper, in a surprisingly nimble show of athletics, sprung over the counter knocking the DIY guys stuff all over the floor. He barred Billy's exit grinning in a satisfied manner. Billy turned around thinking that if he could make it to the back of the store their might be a fire exit through which he could make his escape. However, his first lunging step took him straight into the arms of one of the malls few female uniformed security guards. As Billy barged into her her bosoms absorbed most of the impact . Unfazed by this she deftly twisted him around to face forward and held him with his arms behind his back as she marched him past the shopkeeper and out of the DIY store.

"you little punk, thought I wasn't watching you didn't ye" said the storekeeper to Billy.

"do you want to press charges?" said the lady security guard to the shopkeeper.

"you bet!" said the owner of the store giving Billy a vindictive grin. "its nearly lunch time, I'll be along in 20 minuets"

"OK, we'll keep him under lock and key." Said the security guard as she led Billy away to the stores security office.

As Billy was lead through the busy shopping mall through the crowds of mid week shoppers he thought to himself that there was no way he was going to get cautioned again for stealing. His mother had threatened to ground him for a year if he got caught doing it again and his father told him he would get even bigger whooping than the last time. Billy had been in trouble a lot lately and this was the last thing that he needed. He had to find a way to escape. There were approaching the side corridor that lead to the malls security office. He had to act now. Billy brought his heel down hard on one of the security woman's black patent leather pumps. She let out an almighty squeal of pain and mentally cursed herself for not wearing more sensible shoes to work whilst tightening her grip on him even more. She sure was a strong lady thought Billy. Try as he might he couldn't struggle free of her grip.

"you little bastard" the woman hissed. "You've broken my toe."

Billy said nothing. The lady look very mad and saying something stupid to her would only get him into more trouble. They were attracting a lot of stares by this time, what with Billy twisting and turning trying to break free and the lady trying to hold him whilst balancing on one foot. After looking around the lady decided to head for the nearest quite store were she would be able to call for assistance on her radio. Eventually she spun Billy around and they both headed for the doorway of what appeared to be a bridal gown store. Once inside she threw Billy forward and closed the shops entrance door. The store was lined with mannequins in dresses and wedding suits. These were mostly lined up against the walls. In front of them were smaller mannequins, the girls in bridesmaids gowns and the boys in pageboy outfits. Behind the counter an elderly lady stood up to see what the commotion was. She was short and plump with a very kind face. This was framed with spectacles which were perched right on the tip of her nose.

Thinking she would cause him no trouble Billy darted for the back of the store in an attempt to find an emergency exit. As he approached the counter he stumbled and knocked over on of the display dummies and heard the loud hollow thud as it struck the ground followed by an anguished cry from the old lady. He ran past the counter and deeper into the store. Neither the security lady nor the shopkeeper attempted to stop him. At the back of the store lay an open door. As he ran through it he found himself in a room full of more shop mannequin's in various states of dress. Their must have been at least fifty, many of them propped up against the back wall. He figured that the exist must be behind some of them so he started lifting and moving them to one side. He wasn't going to give up trying to escape until they cuffed him and drove him away. The beating he would get of his father was all the incentive he needed.

He was just moving his second mannequin, a particularly heavy male model, when he heard the door that he had just run through slam shut. Excellent, he though, this will give me more time to escape. However, he had just started tugging at another mannequin when the lights in the room went out. Billy could see nothing as pitch black surrounded him. luckily as his eyes adjusted to the gloom he saw what he thought was a slither of daylight through the tangled mass of plastic bodies. He gave of almighty tug on one of the mannequins only for its arm to brake loose. Billy flew backwards and hit his head on some unseen object. He was out cold before he hit the floor.

Outside the old woman knelt over the broken mannequin the Billy had knocked over in his dash for freedom. The security lady cursed Billy and asked the old lady if there was anyway he could get out of the room he had ran into. The old lady looked up tearfully and said that their wasn't.

"what has he done to make you so angry with him?" asked the old lady curious as to why the security guard had been cursing Billy in such an unladylike manner.

"the little thug was caught steeling in Bobs DIY store. I was just taking him back to the security office to be cautioned when he stamped on my foot. Dam near broke my toe I think."

"cautioned! Is that all that would of happened to him? stealing is a very serious crime. If everybody went around and just stole everything were would we all be then?." Observed the old lady.

"yeah, I wish there was something else we could do to them. A caution is no deterrent. Give it a week or so and he'll be back in again filling his pockets and laughing at us" said the security lady in a resigned manner.

"a week you say? Perhaps there is a way to punish him or at least keep him out of mischief a while longer. We could also help him make up for the damage he has caused here." Said the old lady looking at her broken mannequin.

"what do you mean?" said the security lady.

"I have an idea how we can punish him. leave him with me and be sure to drop by in the morning. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at the difference a day can make to his behaviour." Said the old lady rather ominously.

The security lady looked at the old woman. She doubted very much that such a sweet old girl could have much effect on the little punks behaviour, however their was something about the ladies manner that made her think it was worth a try. If she went and collected him and cautioned him she knew what the outcome would be and besides, the old lady had her intrigued.

"OK, I'll pop back in the morning, mind you, I'm expecting big changes." Said the security lady as she hobbled towards the shops exit.

"don't worry, you'll hardly recognise him" called the old woman has she set about trying to piece the damaged mannequin back together.
 
 

Billy awoke in the dark. The back of his head throbbed with pain from the knock it had sustained whilst trying to escape earlier. He noticed that he could feel the cold concrete floor against his body. As he sat up he realised that he had no clothes on. This scared him.

"is their anybody there?". He shouted but nobody responded.

As the earlier events came back to him he remembered were he was. He called again to the old lady but again there was no answer. The shop was completely silent. He listened a little longer before deciding that he should try and find a light switch so that he could find a way out. He tried to stand but realised that he had some thing on his feet that was making it hard. He lent over to feel his feet and ran a hand down his shin. His leg seemed to be inside some kind of tight fitting material. He reached down and grabbed his foot. It also felt like it was encased in a shiny material, possible come kind of plastic. He realised that he must have some kind of boots on that had high heels.

Billy wondered what the hell had gone on. Here he was alone in the back of some old ladies wedding clothes shop naked except for a pair of plastic high heeled boots.

He decided to take them off before attempting to find a light switch that would allow him to make his escape. He felt around his calf for were he imagined a zipper might be but found none. He tried further towards his ankle but again found none. He ran his hands from ankle to knee on both sides of his left leg but found no zipper or even a seem or the top of the boot. He tried to wiggle his toes inside the boot but could not. He figured that they must be very tight. That, he thought, would account for why his legs felt so thin.

His eyes had now become a little more used to the darkness. He noticed what looked like a small band of light that he figured was coming from under the door that lead into the store front. Steadily he got to his feet and headed for it. He figured that the logically, the light switch for the room he was in would be around there somewhere. Progress was slow as he had never worn high heeled shoes before. The clicking sound they made on the concert floor send shivers through him. His body felt a little numb due to having no clothes on and lying on the cold concrete floor. Boy, he thought, was that old lady gonna pay for this.

After what seemed like an eternity of feeling his way along the wall lined with mannequins and their obstructing limbs he finally reached the door. Before trying it he decided it would be best to try and find the light switch in order that he could locate his clothes. He didn't want to burst into the store front naked except for a pair of high heeled boots. He felt around on the wall up and down to the right of the door but found nothing. He edged over to the left side of the door and placed his hand directly on what he assumed was a light switch. With a sigh of relief he flicked it up and nearly jumped out of his skin as the room flooded with light and he was confronted by a mannequin staring him directly in the eyes.

Billy thought that his eyes were playing tricks on him as the mannequin seemed to be moving behind the door in front of him. Stranger still it seemed to be imitating his movements. Billy shut his eyes for a second and then opened them again. The mannequin was still there looking back at him. It was pinkie-peach coloured from head to toe and had impossibly slender legs. Its tiny feet were moulded into the form of high heeled shoe so that it had no toes. It had thin doll like arms and a long delicate neck perched on to of which was a head and face not dissimilar to Billy's own. Its skin was impossibly perfect and look for all the world like shiny polished plastic. For a second there Billy's mind had tried to tell him that he was looking in a mirror but that obviously couldn't be so. The mannequins body proved this beyond all reasonable doubt.

Billy took a step back. The female mannequin instantly copied his movement. Billy decided to take a look at the boots the old lady had put on him, however, as he stared down he saw he that attached to his chest were a pair of small pert breasts, the same as those of the animated mannequin in front of him. The look of surprise on the mannequins face in front of him confirmed his situation. He was indeed staring into a mirror.

Tears filled Billy's eyes as he ran his hands over his plastic coated skin. 'How was this possible?' he thought. He touched his small breasts with his small delicate finders and then ran them down to his crotch were he found... absolutely nothing. Billy started to bawl as he felt for his little pecker and found only shiny soft smooth plastic. A glance in the mirror confirmed that he was completely sexless. His smooth shiny plastic stomach arched gracefully down and disappeared in a 'v' shape between his legs. His reflection in the mirror revealed a young girl around about Billy's age, however, the girls bodily features had all been stylised to the point that she looked like some kind of artists impression of how a little girl should look rather than how they do look. Billy's looked at his face. It was still recognisably his although it seemed a little more feminine to him. His hair had remained unchanged making the changes to the rest of his body seem even more extreme.

Looking for a logical answer to his situation Billy convinced himself that the old lady had somehow squeezed him into some kind of body conforming suit and that, if he could find something sharp he'd be able to cut himself free from it. It was just about this time when he realised that he hadn't taken a single breath of air since waking up five minuets ago. Indeed, try as he might he couldn't breath but more strangely, he didn't feel like he need to. This realisation caused Billy to do a very uncharacteristic thing. He fainted dead on the spot like a frightened girl.
 
 

Billy awoke staring at the old ladies dainty feet. He looked up at her and at first didn't remember what had happened to him and his encounter with the mirror. He jumped up with the intention of barging her out of the way but only succeeded in falling over flat on his little plastic fanny.

"how do you like your new body young man, or should I say, young lady?" asked the old woman. "I only ask because the light was on when I arrived and I distinctly remember leaving you in the dark after I turned you into a child mannequin."

Billy's predicament flooded back into his head and he began to feel faint again.

"You look faint dear, I think you need a stand" said the old lady and with that she proceeded to lift Billy up by his slander waist. She carried Billy across the room and over what looked like a pole sticking out of a wide flat base. With little effort see lifted Billy's crotch up above the top of the pole and placed him on top of it. The pole fit into a hole between Billy's plastic bum cheeks dead centre between his legs - something he didn't find when he was examining himself in the mirror. This prompted Billy to became more alert and look around himself. He could feel the pole sticking in him between his legs and he realised his feet were no longer in contact with the ground.

"hey" said Billy weakly "let me down"

"whatever you say sugar" said the old woman and proceeded to spin Billy around on the pole. Billy felt the pole going deeper inside of him and eventually he felt his high heeled feet began to scrape the floor as he screwed down further on his stand. Billy kicked his legs and waved his arms but found he was securely fastened fixed in place. The stand didn't even rock.

"what have you done to me you mad old cow? Why aren't I breathing?" asked Billy frantically.

"I'll have less of the abuse young lady or your punishment might take on a more permanent role" said the old lady in the manner of a cross school mistress.

"what are you punishing me for? I stole nothing from you" said Billy indignantly.

"tut tut, so insensitive. How would you feel if someone barged in here and knocked you over?" said the old lady motioning to a mannequin on the floor, the one that he had ran into the day before.

"your punishment, my dear child, is to take the place of Millie here whilst she is sent away and repaired. Your lucky she can be repaired you know otherwise you would have been her permanent replacement. She will be sent to Europe during which time you will take her place modelling the autumn and winter bridesmaid gowns." Said the old lady, and the almost to herself, "I do hope she's back for spring, she's so much prettier than you."

"you cant keep me in here against my will like this, its not fair and besides I'm a boy. Why do you want me to ware girls clothes?" said Billy dreading the prospect of wearing lacy silk dresses.

"oh, what are you going to do, run away?" at which point Billy started to try and do just that. Whilst Billy thrashed about on his stand the old lady walked of only to return a minute later with a small wicker basket. Billy stopped his futile attempts at escape and pleaded with the old lady to let him go. The old lady looked him in the eye and snapped her finger.

"please!" Billy said but stopped from saying anymore as his voice had become a high pitch soprano.

"I don't thing you fully understand your situation young lady. I have complete control over you as long as your on my premises. I can turn you into or make you do anything I say." Said the old lady chillingly.

"why can't I breath?" asked Billy dreading the answer.

"have you ever seen a doll breathing? No? that's right dollies don't breath and so neither do you. Silly girl!." Said the old lady as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

" Right, enough of this, I've told you what's happening to you and I'll say no more on the subject. Now keep still!" replied the old woman impatiently.

Billy thought about what she said and decided it would be best to play along until he could find a way out of the mess he was in. She had hinted that her powers only worked in the confines of her shop so if he could figure out a way of getting outside he'd be able to make his escape. He just hoped that his body would return to normal. He didn't want to be a plastic girl for the rest of his life.

With snap of her fingers the old lady made a large full length mirror appear about eight feet in front of Billy. In it he could now see that he was perched on top of a white shiny pole mounted on a white stand. His legs were out stretched slightly either side of the pole and he angled his feet down to at least give him some feeling that he was supporting his own weight.

"your postures is terrible young lady, it will just never do" said the old lady suddenly.

"time to position you for your stand in role as Millie.... Do this" said the old lady and mimicked an sweet pose with her hands held out in front of her clasping some imaginary object. Billy didn't want to do what she said but his body - that wasn't really his body - quickly obeyed her commands. Try as he did to fight, in three seconds flat he was in the exact pose that the old lady had shown him. The old lady gave another snap of her fingers and Billy felt his body become completely rigid. He couldn't move a muscle in his body, indeed he felt devoid of all energy and completely hollow. He could now only move his head and neck. He looked at himself in the mirror and at the sweet pose he was now stuck in. he figured he would remain like this until the real Millie returned from being repaired in Europe.

Billy hadn't noticed the split lines that had appeared on his body when the old lady has solidified him. the old lady moved towards him and bent down. In the mirror he say - and felt - he take hold of his left leg. With a sharp pull his leg detached from his body. Billy cried out in surprise.

"oh shit", he squealed, "please please turn me back, I'll be a good boy I promise. I wont tell anybody about this, pleeeassseee."

But the old lady just pulled of his right leg and arms. Billy sobbed uncontrollably as he looked through tear laden eyes at his reflection in the mirror. He looked for all the world like a dress makers dummy, albeit a dummy for little girls dresses. The old lady knelt in front of him and unscrewed the heels from the bottom of his feet. She then proceeded to roll down a white stocking on each of his detached legs. Strangely, Billy could feel this and it only added to his confusion. She reached over to a small shoe box and from the tissue paper inside produced a pair of small white satin high heeled pumps which she placed on each of Billy's feet.

"did you feel that?" asked the old lady.

"yes" said replied Billy in a higher than ever voice.

"good, because your going to have to learn to do it for you self when I let you go"

"but you said th...." Started Billy but was immediately cut of by the old lady.

"Quite. Good girls only speak when their spoken to and your not even a girl yet. You're my bridesmaid dolly." Said the old lady as she slipped his hands into a pair of white lace finger-less gloves and replaced his legs.

As Billy stared at his girlie reflection he grew angry at being forced to dress as a girl against his will. However, being unable to move he was powerless to do anything about it. She could dress him in whatever grille out fit she wanted to and the only thing he could do was look pretty just like the dolly that he now obviously was. He wondered what the old which had meant when she said that he wasn't even a girl. The 'yet' at the end of the sentence filled him with dread. Did she plan on having him remain a girl when his punishment was over? Billy's began to wonder about his family and friends. His mother and father would surely have contacted the police by now who, at this very minute, would be investigating his disappearance. Sooner or later they would get to the video camera footage of him being led away from the DIY store....

"Oh, how sweet" butted in the old lady, "you don't have to worry about you mother and father. When I turned you into Millie's replacement the world forgot that you ever existed. Its easier this way, no nasty policeman calling asking awkward questions. No, there's only one other person who knows you're here and she'll be keeping an eye on you when I'm not around." Said the old woman.

The last ounce of fight drained away from Billy. As the old lady pulled Millie's bridesmaids gown over Billy's arm-less body he realised he wouldn't have had the spirit to fight even if he could move. If nobody could even remember that he ever existed then he really was just a little girl mannequin in a bridesmaid dress.

The old lady reattached Billy's arms through the cap selves of the gown and repositioned them in the correct pose. She then snapped her fingers right in front of Billy's face and when she removed her hand Billy could see that his lips were now bright pink and glistening. His cheeks were rosy red and his eyebrows were now delicately arched pencil lines above his lightly made up eyes. Billy felt even more humiliated that before. That fact the his face had remained relatively unchanged had given him a mental anchor with which to keep in touch with reality. Now he had the absolute appearance of a pretty little girl, albeit a rather unhappy one.

"nearly finished. You can soon go and show the world how pretty you are. Cheer up I know a lot of little girls who would simply die to be as cute as you. Give us a smile" said the old lady.

Billy smiled weakly against his will.

"you can do better than that." insisted the old witch.

Billy's facial muscles twitched but still refused to produce the beaming smile that the which commanded.

"one last time, SMILE"

If anything Billy's smile diminished although inside he felt a little happier. Even with her powers she couldn't make him happy about his situation.

"right, I have no time for this" said the old lady a little defensively and with one last snap of her fingers Billy felt his face become as ridged as the rest of his body. He tried again to move but the futility of it was immediately apparent. He cold feel no energy in his limbs with which to move them. The only thing he could feel were the clothes draped on his hard plastic body; the silk stockings cling to his slender legs, the satin shoes on his little feet, the silk panties against his smooth featureless crotch and all covered by a lacy bridesmaid gown but for his doll-like arms that were positioned meekly in front of him.

Billy heard knocking at the front of the store. The old lady disappeared to answer it. Billy's hopes rose slightly at the thought that it could be someone who might rescue him. They were instantly dashed by his reflection in the mirror. Even is it was the police or even his own mother they would never recognise him. He looked exactly like an, indeed was, a 5 foot 5 mannequin of a little girl in a pretty pink bridesmaid gown. His hair was the same as it had always been but his face was now so pretty that you would just think he was a model of a girl with short hair. And besides all of that he thought, I'm plastic.

Billy heard footsteps coming back into the back room, some regular, some not. Unable to move his head Billy had to wait for the old lady and the security lady to come into his view. As they did the security lady let out an astonished laugh.

"how did you do it?" she asked as she bent over to look into Billy's motionless face.

"Oh, I just chopped up an old mannequin I had lying around and fitted it around him. I'll let him out in a day or two and he'll be none the worse for his little ordeal." Lied the old lady.

"you can keep him in their for a week for all I care" said the security lady, "the little bastard broke my toe."

Billy wanted to scream. 'put inside an old mannequin!', 'my fucking arms and legs come of!!' he wanted to say.

The security lady lifted up Billy's dress and ran a hand up the inside of his left stocking clad leg.

"wow, you did a really good job. You would swear that he was made of plastic. Say, you don't do car body repairs do you?" joked the security lady.

"can he hear me?" asked the younger woman.

"of course, tell him what you think of him now" replied the old lady.

"I hope this teaches you a lesson you little punk. If you can't be a good little boy at least you will be a good little girl. Well, at least for a few days." Said the security lady to Billy. "and if I see you in here again I'll have Miss. Crackelcuff here seal you up in there for good. I'd quite like a little dolly to keep me company around the house."

"would you like to do the honours Sue?" asked Miss. Crackelcuff as she handed a small bouquet of flowers to the security lady.

"certainly" said Sue. It was then that Billy realised why he had been frozen in the pose that he had. Sue placed the bouquet in Billy's hands and made a fuss over straightening his dress out so that it was just right. The finishing tough to Billy was provided by the old lady. She disappeared from his view and returned with a wig of golden locks not unlike that of the girl in the goldie locks and the three bears story book that Billy had read in his pre school years. She placed it over Billy's chestnut coloured crew-cut completing his transformation. The security lady gushed at how beautiful he was and then , rather surprisingly, started to cry.

"what's a matter dear?" asked Miss. Crackelcuff in a genuinely concerned voice.

"oh nothing, I'm just being silly. Its just that I've never had any children of my own. I've always wanted a little girl but I've just never found the right man. Seeing this pretty little girl just kind of reminded me that I'll probable never have any children of my own" said the security lady and with that her sob's grew louder still.

"there, there." Comforted the old lady. "never say never" she said. Billy didn't like the way she was looking directly into his eyes as she said this. He didn't know how but he just new if he ever got out of this he never take a pee standing up again.

"come on dear help me put him in the shop window. Its opening time in... Ooo three minuets, better hurry up" said Miss. Crackelcuff.

With that Sue composed herself and helped lift Billy through the store to the window area at the front of the store. Miss. Crackelcuff drew back a heavy red crushed velvet curtain that acted as a backdrop to the display of bridal gown clad mannequin's. Together they lifted Billy into the display area and positioned him next to a tall elegant mannequin in a white heavily jewelled wedding dress. When they were sure that he looked as pretty as was humanly possible the drew the curtain closed, but not before the security woman gave him a little wink.

And so started young Billy's life as a teenage model for bridesmaid gowns. He had gone to the mall with the intention of stealing a knife but had himself been stolen. His boyhood had been taken away from him as cleanly as could have been achieved with even the sharpest of knives. He was now imprisoned in the form of a plastic model little girl of around twelve years old. His mischievous boyish good looks had been replaced by pretty little girl innocence. He had swapped trainers and sock for white satin size 3 high heeled pumps and white silk stockings. His trousers and tee-shirts had been replaced by satin and lace gowns. He hated how pretty he was and the fact that he could do nothing about it. All he could do was wait for the day the old woman would release him from his torment...

Days went past and this turned into weeks. Billy was patient at first. Every now and again Billy would spot some of his friend from back when the was real. The old lady seemed to have a knack for timing his outfit changes just when they were passing. She would strip him naked and leave him there, sometimes for up to half a day before dressing him in the shop window in front of all of the passers by.

For the first few days the security lady would walk past and wink at him but as time went on she looked in less and less until eventually she stopped looking in altogether. Billy knew that she was the only other person in the world who knew that he was now a mannequin, or rather, as the security lady thought, inside one. He began to think of her as his last hope for release from his feminine bondage. He started to look froward to being dressed in new outfits. He reasoned that a new dress could catch her attention and maybe make her question why he was still in the shop window.

As the weeks turned into months Billy pinned all of his hopes on the security lady. He fantasised that she would come and rescue him. He didn't dare lose faith in her otherwise he knew he would go crazy for sure. He already thought he had started going crazy. Just the other day when the old lady was changing his stockings he realised he was really enjoying the sensation of the material being rolled up his smooth plastic legs. The started to enjoy the feeling of having the shoes slid onto his stocking clad little feet. He had even started looking forward to the night time so that he could see his reflection better in the sore fronts glass. Initially this had been the worst time of day for him. His un-moving gaze was fixed in a constant stare at his own pretty reflection. This had drove him nuts but now he had began to take pleasure from the way he looked. He knew if he wasn't changed back soon he wouldn't want to be.

After 5 months Billy had started to think of himself as Millie's permanent replacement. Millie had not returned from the were she had been sent to be repaired and it didn't look like she was coming back. After 8 months Billy retreat into his day dream world was almost complete. He now thought of himself as Billie and would often go whole days without remembering who he was before he became a pretty model. He began to relay enjoy changing day. He had grown to love the feeling of the little girls clothes being slid on and off of his smooth body. From past experience Miss. Crackelcuff thought to herself that it usually took much longer to break little boys spirits. For Billy to be thinking such thoughts after just eight months meant that he must have been a potential little sissy all along. Billie was ready for release. She made a phone call arranging for Sue to meet her at the store early the next day saying she had a surprise for her. She was going to show her what a good boy Billy now was compared to last time they met

Later that evening when she had shut up shop Miss. Crackelcuff removed Billy from the display window and carried him into the back room were she placed him in the middle of the floor on his stand.

"Well Billy, I've been listening in on your thoughts and it seems you've learns you lesson. I don't think you'll ever be a bad boy again so I'm going to turn to back." And with that Miss. Crackelcuff snapped her fingers. Billy's stand disappeared as did his girls clothes. When his feel touched the floor his old body and clothes reappeared. He was now the little boy the was dragged into the shop by sue all of those months ago. He stood motionless for a few moments.

"Well what do you say?" asked Miss. Crackelcuff expecting a thank you.

"What have you done to me?" replied Billy in a girlie soprano voice.

"Oh you can stop talking like that now Billy, you're a little boy again, do you want to thank me for turning you back into a little boy again?" asked Miss. Crackelcuff again.

"what do you mean turning me back into a little boy? I demand you turn me back into a dolly again!, uh yuck." Said Billy wriggling around in his clothes in some discomfort.

"have you got a dress I can put on while you turn me back?" asked Billy.

"you mean you don't want to be a little boy anymore?" asked the cunning witch.

"heavens no!" replied Billy.

The which snapped her fingers and Billy's transformed into that of a little girl of around eleven years old.

"and my dress?" Billy enquired rather cheekily.

The witch once again snapped her fingers and Billy's clothes transformed into that of a young contemporarily dressed girl. His trousers became a denim mini-skirt, his T-shirt became two sizes to small for him and his trainers became pretty little sandals with one inch heels. He ran over to a large mirror of to his left and looked at himself and started to sob gently.

"What's the matter Billy, Have you changed your mind?" asked a confused Miss. Crackelcuff.

"I'm not very pretty am I, can you make me prettier? Oh go on please" pleaded Billy.

Miss. Crackelcuff snapped her fingers changing Billy's clothes and appearance of the of a prettier young girl.

"More!" asked Billy politely.

Snap!

"More!!" pleaded Billy.

Snap!

"MORE!!!" he Squealed.

SNAP!
 
 
 
 

Sue arrived at Miss. Crackelcuff's store at eight thirty sharp. She wondered what the surprise that would be. Miss. Crackelcuff was obviously a resourceful and mysterious woman. Who knows what she might have up her sleeve. She knocked on the front door to the shop and was greeted by Miss. Crackelcuff. They exchanged pleasantries as the old lady led her to the counter. Miss. Crackelcuff walked behind.

"I've made you a present Sue." Said Miss. Crackelcuff. Form under the counter she produced the prettiest little dolly that Sue had ever seen. It was about 12" tall and was dressed in the most exquisitely detailed dress. Layer upon layer of the fines silk made up the skirt portion of the dress. Its little arms and chest were covered in incredibly detailed lace. Its body was of the finest porcelain and its face, although unbelievably pretty, had a familiarity about it Sue could not quite place.

"here, pull the cord" said Miss. Crackelcuff enthusiastically as she spun the little doll around.

Sue did so and the doll mouthed the words 'Hello, I'm Billy the pretties little dolly in the world'.

Sue giggled and picked up the doll and looked it over.

"You know, I think it realy is the prettiest little doll ever made." Said Sue appreciatively.

"He sure is" replied Miss. Crackelcuff.

Only then did Sue recognise the dolls face.

"But how d..." Sue began to ask.

"don't ask any questions. He asked only that you take care of him and the you change his outfit at least twice a day." Informed the old lady.

"think of him as the start of your collection. You just bring any little roughiens you encounter my way and I'll see about rounding of their sharp edges. you'll soon have quite a colection."

And with that Sue left the shop with a bag of dolls clothes in one hand and a box with a little dolly wrapped in tissue paper in the other.

"Hello, I'm Billy the pretties little dolly in the world" said a little voice from inside it.

The end....?

Let me know what you think,

Apollosix@hotmail.com