As she obsessively pondered what she would do if she never found a way to reclaim her own body, there came a knock on the door, which was shortly answered by Catherine. It was only a second before Beat Simon came running into the bedroom, wearing her pink parka and grinning with delight.
The British rabbit-aardvark girl seated herself on the corner of the bed and wrapped her hand around the top of the footboard. "Wonderful news, Frankie!" she announced.
It was the first time Sue Ellen had ever heard anyone whose last name wasn't Frensky call Francine by the nickname Frankie. Then she recalled the rumor that Binky had originated the previous month. She had discounted it as silly gossip that wasn't her business even if it was true. But now itwas her business...
"Uh, please don't sit on my bed," said Fransue uneasily.
Beat, her grin suddenly gone, slowly rose to her feet and stood at the side of the bed.
"What's the news?" Fransue asked her.
Beat grinned again. "I got a perfect mark on my maths test!"
"So what?" Fransue replied with indifference. "You always get perfect grades...uh, marks."
"Yes, but this was my first test at Uppity Downs," said Beat, bouncing on her heels excitedly. "I was afraid I wouldn't do well. I thought I might even get a C. But I sailed through with flying colors."
"Bully for you, Beat," Fransue muttered emotionlessly.
Beat stepped closer to Francine, concerned about her lack of spirit. "Is something wrong?"
"Yes, something's very wrong." Fransue sat up, a bitter scowl on her face. "Two hours ago, Francine got a call from Muffy asking her and me to meet with her at an old barn. When we got there, it wasn't Muffy, but some kid in a mask who sprayed us with sleeping gas. When we woke up, I was in Francine's body, and she was in mine. Oh, and I'm really Sue Ellen, by the way."
At first Beat stared at Fransue with a dark, incredulous expression. Then she burst into laughter. "Oh, I get it," she giggled. "This is some new fantasy game where you pretend you're someone else. Can I play? Can I be Fern? Can I levitate people and haunt their dreams?"
"I'm serious, Beat!" Fransue bellowed. "Remember the day we first met in London, when we were six? You had just gotten over the chickenpox. You still had a big red spot right here." She pointed to her left temple. "Your hair was longer, and you were wearing a red plaited skirt. You had memorized the Jabberwock poem from Alice in Wonderland, and you couldn't stop reciting it."
Although momentarily stunned, Beat quickly regained her composure. "That's very impressive, Frankie. How much did Sue Ellen tell you about our meeting in London?"
Fransue sighed hopelessly and collapsed onto her back. "No one will ever believe me," she groaned.
"I like this game," said Beat, smiling again. "I think I'll go over to Sue Ellen's now and see how much she knows about your life."
As Beat rushed out of the bedroom and through the apartment door, Fransue yelled after her, "Muchacha estupida!"
Another half hour passed with Fransue and Beckham staring uselessly at each other, and finally Fransue decided to call Suefran to find out if she had reached any conclusions.
The phone rang at the Armstrong house. Mrs. Armstrong, who was cleaning up after dinner, answered it and called for Suefran.
"Hello?" said Suefran as she put the receiver to her mouth with her right hand.
"Francine, this is Sue Ellen," came Francine's voice.
"Can you speak louder?" Suefran requested. "I have ears on the top of my head now."
"Sorry." Fransue increased her volume. "Did Beat talk to you?"
"Yeah," Suefran replied. "I tried to convince her that I'm Francine, but she thinks it's some kind of game."
"Same here. Any ideas how we can get out of this situation?"
"Nope."
"Me neither," said Fransue sadly.
"It looks like we may be stuck like this for a while," Suefran observed, "so I think we should try to learn as much about each other as we can."
"You're right," Fransue answered. "But first, let's set down some rules. Rule number one, don't read my diary."
"You know I would never do that," said Suefran with an air of insincerity. "Rule number two. You're Jewish now, so hands off the pork."
Fransue gasped. "What? No hot dogs? No pork chops?"
"You got it," Suefran replied.
"You can't stop me from eating pork," said Fransue indignantly.
"You can't stop me from reading your diary," Suefran retorted.
"Touch my diary and you're dead, Francine!" Fransue growled.
"Go ahead," said Suefran fearlessly. "Beat up an HIV-positive girl with a broken arm."
After a long, thoughtful pause, Fransue said, "Okay, okay. No pork."
"What's the situation with that, anyway?" Suefran asked.
"Situation with what?"
"You know, HIV."
"Oh." Fransue paused. "Still positive. Your magic unicorn horn didn't work, so you'll have to take the drugs regularly."
In Sue Ellen's head, Francine's mind once again wondered how the same horn that had restored Marina's memories and turned D.W. into a unicorn, could have failed to defeat a simple virus. She had been there...she had watched Sue Ellen make the wish...
"And I know what you're gonna ask next," Fransue went on. "The doctor says that if I keep taking the drugs, then I have a good chance of a normal lifespan. So as long as you're in my body, you have to keep taking them."
"I will," said Suefran. "I promise."
"Anything else?"
"Nope. Have fun at temple tomorrow."
Fransue groaned as she replaced the phone receiver.
(To be continued...)
