Anniversary Surprise

"Can they really work? Elaine, it would be cool and crazy if they did. But it's impossible. Just impossible."

Bob was referring to the anniversary present Elaine had just given him. Purchased at an antique store, the transformation rings were hundreds of years old. Bob felt embarrassed that all he had gotten her was a dozen red roses and a bottle of Champaign, which he had not yet given to her.

"Let's give it a try, Bob. Each so-called magic ring has a green compartment for the starting stage, and a red compartment for the ending stage. The center of each compartment can be set to blue, for boy, or pink, for girl. Simple."

"Simple, sure, but impossible. And what if it works?"

"It would be an incredible adventure. Come on - let's try it. If we like it we could try it for a day or two, and if either of us doesn't like it we can always reverse it a few minutes."

"OK. Since this is Friday evening and Monday is a holiday, let's try it until the end of the day on Monday, or until either of us wants to change back sooner. But first let's remove our wedding rings because if our bodies increase in size the metal in the rings could cut into our fingers."

Elaine agreed, took off her wedding ring, put on one transformation ring, and turned it so that pink was in the green compartment and blue was in the red compartment. Bob took off his wedding ring, put on the other transformation ring, and set his so blue was in the green compartment, and pink was in the red compartment. They touched their rings together and -- there was a lightening spark, and each of their bodies turned into that of the other!

They stared silently at each other in shock for several minutes. Finally Elaine said the obvious: "I can't believe it -- but they worked perfectly."

Bob nodded mutely, slightly in shock, looking first at his new hands, and then at the rest of his new body.

Elaine looked at her new body for several minutes, and then continued: "These clothes are much too small for me now.