The title of this second chapter is an obvious tribute to a phenomenal duo of writers called Twisted Redfield Sisters, that is currently giving us a big juicy tantalizing Incestfield (it's called Family Portrait and I suggest you to check it out!). Their story is one of the biggest reasons that inspired me to write this silly story of mine. So, this chapter is dedicated to both Xaori and Sofistinha.
A little warning before reading any further: from now on, due to the switch, I'll call the main characters Real Claire and Real Chris, so just imagine a big brawny guy when talking about Real Claire (or just Claire when home and Fake Chris when in public) and a gorgeous delicate red-haired girl when talking about Real Chris (fake Claire). It's... twisted, I know. I just hope the writing won't get too messy because of it XD
Enjoy!
CHAPTER 2 - Twisted Redfield Siblings
Robert Redfield sipped his hot coffee slowly, standing by the door frame of the infirmary's room. That had been a hell of a day. The outburst of that diabolical machine had almost caused a carnage, since the combination of such an enormous amount of radioactive elements with such a high voltage had had a terrific outcome. Two of his trainees were seriously injured, mostly for glass cuts but, also, a bit for radiation's exposure as they were closer than the others to the core of the machine.
Fortunately, the tests had shown no signs of radiations on the other attendees. Nevertheless something horrible had occurred to them too. It took a while for everyone of them to understand what exactly was going on in the aftermath of the tragedy, but once the truth was clear it was... uncanny.
Beyond any comprehension.
Few of the attendees seemed to have just... well... switched bodies? Damn, it sounded so ridiculous that it made him frown even more, his pout fell on the ground. What seemed to be just a post-trauma mental confusion and shock in some of them, had conversely proved itself being... something bewilderingly unbelievable.
They had switched bodies.
It was just against every neuroscience assuredness!
Two scientists woke up after the blast not recognizing the skin they were in.
Dr Shona Parker was so shattered when she saw herself... not in her usual chocolate shaded skin. The same happened to Dr Angela Miller who was sure to have become daltonic after seeing her hands so dark and thicker. They both were really flustered but, after several minutes of confusion and stuttered answers about their identities, the truth started revealing itself. And it hit hard.
But it wasn't over yet for both him and his wife, because their kids where still laying on the floor unconscious and, once they woke up, they showed the very same symptoms the two scientists had shown. Panic and... identity issues. Such a euphemism.
They had been all escorted to the infirmatory and further examination and questions seemed to confirm the sad diagnosis also for Chris and Claire. They. Had. Swapped. Bodies.
They also had to give Claire... well, Chris actually, some sedatives as he did lose his mind when he finally understood he was "dwelling" in his sister's body.
Real Claire took it more easily... if crying out aloud would be considered "taking it easy".
His kids reactions somehow confirmed everything, for seeing a sobbing and shaking Chris (well, his body) curled on the stretcher in resignation and Claire just going nuts and cursing like a demoniac, was too unnatural to be real.
Lily was shocked too. She wouldn't stop going back and forth between the two stretchers caressing her kids and trying desperately to calm them down, but it was obvious that she was trying to calm herself too.
It was really late in the night when they received the results of all the various medical examinations the doctors had done. Chris and Claire were physically alright, not a single scratch on Claire, just a couple little shallow bruises on Chris. The radiation checking showed no signs of it fortunately. But their mental condition was what worried them the most. They were shocked.
Alongside this still hard to believe body swap, they had just got through a massive explosion and that one alone would have left in shock even the most trained and experienced soldiers.
Doctors agreed that taking the kids back home would have been better for them: a familiar place, like home, would make them feel more at ease and safe.
Rob sat next to his two kids, right between their stretchers and started caressing their hands, talking softly about going home and promising he'd find a way to make up for what had happened, bringing it all back to normality, where Chris was Chris and Claire was Claire.
He fought hard to hide the shiny tears forming in his reddish worn eyes, for he was broken and feeling extremely guilty for all that had occurred. He was the lab chief, therefore responsible of the outcome of the experiment. If that damned machine would've worked well, his would've been the public glory among the scientific community. Since it didn't, his was the liability for that disaster. His beloved kids were suffering because of him. If only he hadn't asked them to come...
They arrived at home at about 3 a.m. and settled that the following day Lily, Claire and Chris would have stayed home while Rob would've gone back to work to figure out what exactly went wrong and how to make it all reverse.
Real Chris, after all the sedatives, was sleeping tight. His father lifted him from the car and brought him in his room. Luckily Claire's body was pretty light to carry.
Real Claire walked home with her head lowered, unable to look at the body in her father's arms. Her head was heavy with tiredness and slumber and keeping her gaze low would help her deal with the fact that now she was watching the world from her brother's 6 feet 2 height. Both Lily and Rob agreed that the two siblings should have slept in their real rooms to make the awakening less traumatic, thus real Claire just got Chris' body to drop onto her pink bed.
The sun was high in the sky when Claire opened her eyes. Her gaze fell on her bedside table with her cute pale pink flamingo lamp on it and the streams of sunlight filtering through the big window shutters, projecting constellations of little luminous circles on her soft blanket. She laid back, taking over her surroundings.
Her room. Her shelter. Her... She rubbed her eyes and with a sorrowful sigh she felt a crispy beard under her palms. Just like the day before.
No. She was in her room, of course, but not in her body. No. That hadn't been a dream. It was real. Reality swooped down on her like an avalanche of depressed and distressing feelings.
She sat up and watched her brother's big arms stretching in front of her, responding to her thoughts and commands. It was actually her the one making them move.
She moved aside the blanket and stepped out of bed, instinctively reaching for her slippers just to feel totally dumb when she realized they wouldn't fit her brother's big feet. Therefore, barefoot it was.
She hit her bed corner making her stumble a bit. She wasn't used at all at the different amount of space that big body would occupy.
Once outside her room she stopped, uncertain about what to do next. She ought to go to the bathroom but that would mean...
Shaking her head she turned left instead and stopped again in front of Chris' door. Going in, seeing her body again was something she wasn't prepared to. Better procrastinate it.
She just took the stairs instead. She was hungry. Damn, Chris' body was too hungry!
Once in the kitchen, she found her mother there. They locked eyes for a bit, not saying a single word until Claire sat on a stool and asked if there were some pancakes.
There weren't any, instead Lily offered her some big cocoa muffins she had made the afternoon before, simply sliding the serving tray over the kitchen island's quartz surface. Claire devoured a couple of them greedily and was really surprised when she felt she could eat another two easily. So she did.
Yes, Chris' body had been indeed starving.
She looked at her mother with her mouth still full of downy brown cake and she found her staring with a confounded look on her face. As she had sensed her daughter's inner questioning, Lily said "Claire, it's so weird to see my son move like you do."
Real Chris was still in bed, the effect of the sedative had finished about half an hour before, nevertheless, he just stood idly in there, awaken and unable to step outside, his mind still clouded. He eventually grew tired of it and vigorously tossed the blankets away.
He wasn't prepared.
He remembered perfectly what had happened the day before, he knew he was in Claire's body but still he wasn't prepared to actually see it. With an exertion he got up, and even if his head was spinning, confused by the perspective change, he managed to step out the door.
He never felt so light in all his life. His new body seemed so petite to him that he had to check his legs when taking the first steps. He went straight to the bathroom, taking a quick glance at his sister's empty room through the open door. He was relieved he didn't meet her. Well, that was not quite exact... he would have been happy to meet Claire. He just wouldn't see his own body ambulate in front of him.
As he passed in front of the bathroom's big mirror, he winced at the reflection. Aware but still not prepared. Again.
He braced himself and, lifting his eyes, he stared. His sister stared back at him. She smiled. He needed that. He needed to see his sister smile again even if she frowned fast and lowered her head. His heart was breaking. She must be suffering too. He didn't want it. He didn't want Claire to feel the same as he was feeling in that moment. No matter which body he was in, he would take care of her.
Afterwards he splashed some fresh water on his face, feeling the smooth skin under his fingers.
The sound of flowing water had a "stimulating" effect on his body. Dammit. He looked back at the mirror, Claire was looking at him with a terrified stare.
Real Claire decided it was about time to go upstairs and meet her brother and all the crap that involved. Once on top of the staircase, she noticed Chris' door was wide open and the room empty. She winced when she saw her... well, him, staring back by the bathroom door. They took their time in just looking at each other, motionless and silent.
Real Chris moved first. He approached her slowly but with purposeful steps, stopping only when he was few inches away from his own body. Real Claire did the rest.
She hugged Chris really tight making him cough and ask desperately for air. She wasn't used to her brother's strength either. Chris had always hugged her softly, she didn't imagine he would actually be able to squeeze her that much. She loosened the grip but didn't let go of him. It felt weird. It felt so fucking weird. But she needed to be hugged, just like the way that tiny slim female body of hers was doing right then.
"Claire" real Chris said, a discomfort look cracking on his face at the sound of his sister's voice coming out of him "Claire... how are you?"
Now a concerned look, eyes scanning his latter face for any sign of... whatever would cross his sister's mind.
Dammit.
He knew his own face pretty well, but he was used to feel emotions from the inside and not fathom them on the outside upon his skin.
He knew Claire's facial expressions too well, he could read her mind most of the times, but now... now the face in front of him was a mystery, a mystery to decipher.
"I... I..." Claire started, her new deep raw voice shaking a bit, as she too wasn't used to hear that "I... Chris... I need to pee." She blushed. Chris noticed. He took her big hand with his gracious one and led Claire into the bathroom.
"I've had the same problem" he said "I know how you feel, Claire. I know it's... my body. But you cannot keep it."
Claire looked at him in despair. She didn't want to look at her brother's intimate parts, she didn't want to touch them or feel anything coming from them, not even peeing relief. She wanted her body back. But she knew she had no choice. Chris was right: she couldn't keep it forever. She nodded at her brother without looking at him and shyly added "can you please go out?".
As he left the bathroom, only after having given her the biggest hug that body would allow him, real Claire approached the toilet. With her eyes closed she grabbed the waistband of her trousers and, deep breath, she pulled them down alongside the boxers and sat, slamming her hard buttocks on it. It took her a few moments before relaxing and being ready.
It was strange. But relieving. She held her breath all the time and didn't open her eyes, she didn't even use the toilet paper as she had no intention to touch her brother's penis. She just waited a bit and then put up again her clothes. Only then she opened again her eyes. She knew the problem was going to recur, but for now she didn't want to think about it. She just washed her brother's face and then left.
She found real Chris waiting in her own real room, on her unmade pink bed. By the look on her own face she attempted to guess that Chris was deep in his thoughts. She sat down next to him, the mattress and soft blankets compressing incredibly under her weight. So weird.
"Do you think Dad will fix it?" She asked. It sounded more like a low roaring groan rather than a question, normally that very tone she was using would have sounded light and sweet in the high pitch of her girlish voice.
"I hope so, Claire. This is so crazy..." Real Chris shook his head making the long auburn tendrils rock slightly. He sighed and then reached for Claire's hand, squeezing it, as much as his smaller one could grip his former big hand.
They stared each other in the eye, painful looks on both of their faces. He knew his sister was hurting, he had to do something about it, but what he was going to say would just make her feel worse. But he had to do it. They had to face the reality.
The faster the better.
"Claire, I can't tell if Dad's gonna fix this shit, but we must hold on and fight. It's gonna be really hard but we must be strong" he said, noticing the increasing heaviness of his sister's breath. He knew she was going to explode.
"I know that, Chris!" real Claire replied, with a flickering voice "But I am inside your fucking body! And you're in mine! This is so fucked up!" She was breaking down. "Do you know what that means, uh?"
"I know it, Claire!" he raised his voice "I fucking know it! I'm in it just like you are! But at least I try to stay positive! For fuck's sake!".
That happened fast. Their frustration running over them. Their minds were a complete mess and it was really hard to keep calm. Real Claire was on the verge of throwing up as an overwhelming feeling of rage, fear and panic was rising fast inside her, taking a hold of her stomach and squishing it mercilessly.
They both fell silent. There was much to say, but both of them didn't get to find the words to speak their minds.
Claire fought against the urge to cry and repressed her tears. She breathed in deeply and slowly. She recalled all the events from the previous day, the night before, the morning... till she realised that Chris, few minutes before, in the bathroom, said he had had her same problem. And he didn't go to the bathroom after her... that meant that he just did it without thinking twice!
She blushed even more at the thought that Chris had just watched her... down there.
That was the fucking problem. Even if their Dad would have found soon a way to "fix the shit", until then, they should still have to manage to actually live inside their sibling's body and do what they normally do every day, but with the other's body instead.
She shook her head at the thought of having a shower, trying to suppress it.
She took a deep breath and said to herself that it was better being rational as to try clearing things up in her raging mind.
"Ok Chris... So, let's stay positive." She started, in a challenging tone "how about carrying on our lives uh? I mean, taking showers, going to the toilet and basic routine things like that?"
Chris just sighed closing his new pair of blue irises. He leaned back and laid on the mattress, feet still on the floor. He would always be laying down when thinking in his room. Real Claire did the same, aligning her muscled body next to her other own.
"My body is your body now, Claire. I know it's crazy. It freaks me out too" he started after a while "we have no choice, we're trapped in this condition. This is not something everyone goes through... I mean, maybe we are the first ever! This is not something normal siblings would face. But it happened. And it happened to us, Claire. Yet we have to take care of ourselves and of each other too."
He turned towards Claire, staring at his very own hazel eyes and continued "we will get through this together. And if that means that you'll be showering my body... or I will keep yours clean... that's what we'll do. I know... I know it's embarrassing. It'll surely be at the beginning, but it will get easier as soon as we'll get into intimacy with each other's body."
His talking was earnest and direct but he was damn right, again. They had no choice but to live and take care of the body it was given them. They couldn't just stop their hygiene routines!
It'd be really hard.
Intimacy. He really used that word. She never thought she would ever use a word like that referring to her own brother.
Your body is mine. My body is yours now.
She looked at Chris, at her own eyes and simply nodded whispering "let's do this."
They hugged tenderly.
No, the worries weren't all wiped away, she was still fearing the moment she would have to walk in her brother's naked body inside the shower tray, but at least now she had the awareness that it was an inevitable challenge she had to overcome. And Chris would face it as well.
Lily called her children for lunch and the three of them reunited downstairs in the dining room. Few words were spoken. Lily was silent while filling dishes. She was still shocked. Chris and Claire weren't feeling any better though.
"Mommy..." real Claire said.
"Yes Chr-... uhm... Claire..." Lily soon replied, but the mistake she made just remarked the craziness of what had happened.
She started crying pressing a hand on her eyes and letting go of the fork with the other.
The two siblings could hear the crack of their breaking hearts in that very moment. It didn't affect only the two of them but also the rest of the family. Their mother was hurting so bad for them, for the condition they were in, the sorrow they were facing.
She felt the bodies of her two kids hug her from both sides. Chris' strong arms holding both her and Claire's subtle figure. She reached for their faces and caressed them, sobbing quietly. She loved them to death. She never wanted for anything bad to happen to her beloved kids.
"Mom... don't worry. We'll get through this!" real Chris said trying to relent her sobbing "It won't be easy, we know that, but... We'll do it!"
"Chris is right, Mommy!" real Claire soon added "your kids gonna be fine! You raised them strong and badass!"
She said that for her mother, for Chris and for herself too. She needed to believe it. She needed to believe they were strong enough to make it through. Because she was the most wrecked.
Lily smiled at them, kissing their faces and holding them closer, a small wet chuckle rising from her and warming up all the room. The problem was far from being solved, but at least she knew her "badass" kids weren't giving up.
Have you ever watched one of those movies set in American High Schools? I guess you have. Everybody has, at least once in a lifetime.
And I guess you've watched also at least one movie about body switches. I can bet my head there's at least one that fuses these two types together. ("Freaky Friday" anybody?)
Well, this kind of movies are made for a teenage audience thus it's quite natural that they are heavily fictionalised. But I've always wondered: would a body switch be that fun? How would it feel to be inside someone else's body? What if you are a boy and end up into a girl's body? How would this affect not only your daily routines but also your relationships, friendships, minds?
With this story I explored the possible answers. It starts with a surreal assumption and then it analyses what would be the most real, probable things to happen in such eventuality.
I won't ask you if you know about Resident Evil and the Redfields siblings because if you're here... you do.
Incest. Since I had to take an exam on "the incest in ancient Rome laws" at university (and I loved studying it), I got deeply fascinated by that topic. It's controversial, it's taboo, it's scandalous, it's relatable.
Now, mix all the mentioned ingredients and add a very curious and fanciful mind, bake it with a strong passion for English language, and you'll get "One Month In Your Shoes".
See you next chapter.
Love,
a Fangirl