Previously on "The Otherworlders": The girls are back from their mission and everyone has settled back into their routine. The kids have a few classes to attend before Sebastian, Jake, and Cameron will be sent to attend the engagement party of the Vampyr Prince Julian, a distant relative of Sebastian's.

Meanwhile, Patrick and Jake have gotten a mysterious text from Aidan and Inez, saying they have something cool to show them, particular to Shifters. Now, Jake and Patrick are intrigued.

**********

Underneath the towering canopy of an ancient oak tree, Aidan is standing next to Inez. Jake and Patrick stand across from them, Patrick with his arms folded impatiently over his chest. "Okay now that you've dragged us out here. What's this all about?"

Aidan sucks in a breath, then begins. "So, Inez and I were talking about the dilemma you guys have with your clothes..."

Jake and Patrick exchange confused looks.

Aidan adds quickly, "You know, when you shift!"

"Ah... okay..." Patrick nods.

"Yeah, we kept thinking," Inez chimes in with a smile, "what happens to the Shifter kids' clothes during a mission?' I mean during our mission, Ava had to scrounge around in the bushes, looking for her dress after she shifted! I felt so bad for her!"

Aidan nods in agreement. "Exactly! And then there's the hassle of finding all your clothes when you shift back. I mean, what happens if you can't find your socks?!"

"Oh, heavens forbid!" Patrick rolls his eyes, then shoots Jake a bemused look.

"So," Inez begins, her voice filled with a hopeful tone, "we did some brainstorming, and we think we've come up with a solution that would help you guys out! There are some minor spells we can try to string together into a much larger spell that will take care of this for you!"

Jake's eyebrows pinch together. "What would it do?"

"Well," Inez responds, "the spell will shrink your clothes whenever you shift and then expand them again when you shift back into your corporeal form. This way, you wouldn't have to worry about finding your clothes while you're... uh... er..." She looks up at the sky, searching for the most polite phrase, "um... au naturel." She laughs awkwardly.

Patrick and Jake frown skeptically before Patrick breaks the silence. "Look, it's really thoughtful of you guys to do this for us, but I don't think we have the same hang-ups you all do about being..." He glances at Inez. "...what was the phrase? 'Au naturel'?" He laughs lightly. "I mean, truth be told, we run around the Shifter compound naked all the time."

Inez's eyes go wide before catching Jake's gaze, her cheeks turning a deep shade of red. "Oh, wow! Is... is that true?!"

Mortified, Jake's eyes widen in horror. "Absolutely not! We don't!" His voice cracks, then he clears his throat. "I mean, we don't run around naked ALL the time!" He laughs uncomfortably while casting Patrick a fiery glare for putting him in this awkward position. His gaze swings back to Inez. "Honestly, we hardly ever do that," he mumbles as he rolls his eyes. "Like, seriously, it's so incredibly rare." Dying inside, he looks away and focuses on something, anything, far off in the distance.

"Okaaaaay, then..." Inez says slowly. She clears her throat. "Anywhooo..." she continues in a sing-songy voice. "We just thought you might find it more convenient whenever you have to, you know..." She gestures vaguely. "...whenever you need to go back undercover and blend in."

Patrick sighs and looks over at Jake. "It is kind of a drag to have to scrounge around for your clothes while people are waiting for you. It was definitely a pain in the ass on my last mission."

"Yeah, that makes sense," Jake mutters.

Patrick straightens and props his fists on his hips. "Okay then, how does this thing work?"

Aidan reaches into his pocket and pulls out two flat leather bands.

He hands one to Patrick and the other to Jake. "Wear these on your arm, leg, or well, anywhere really. They're quite pliable, so they shouldn't pinch or be uncomfortable in any way. And then you just recite a quick phrase before you shift, and it will take care of the rest! Your clothes will shrink down to a microscopic size and stick to the bands until you need them again. And voila!" He spreads his hands dramatically. "You're good to go!"

"That's right!" Inez pipes up. "And once you get the hang of the charm, you can shrink all of your clothes at the same time, just by thinking about the spell. But, for now, as practice, I'd focus on shrinking only one piece of clothing, just to be on the safe side."

Jake and Patrick exchange quick glances, then Patrick shrugs, and slides the band onto his wrist. "Okay, so what's the phrase?"

"Reducere vestimenta eorum minima forma," Aidan replies.

Bracing himself for a little bit of magic, Patrick plants his feet firmly on the ground, straightens his back, and recites the phrase....

"Reducere vestimenta eorum minima forma," he says.

And then...

Nothing.

He glances down, inspecting his clothes, only to find everything still intact.

Patrick furrows his brows, then tries to recite the phrase again, louder this time. "Reducere vestimenta eorum minima forma," he grumbles.

Still...

Nothing.

Inez tilts her head. "Are you not feeling anything, Patrick?"

"Nope. Not a thing!" he replies. "I was concentrating on my shirt but..." he tugs at his faded denim button down, still hanging snugly to his body.

"Hmm..." Aidan taps his chin. "I was certain this would work," he murmurs. Then he thinks about it for a moment, and suddenly, an idea sparks. "I got it!" he says. "Try this." He raises his hands before him. "Close your eyes and make sure you focus intensely on each and every word as you say them."

"Fine," Patrick mutters. He sighs impatiently but complies. Then he recites the phrase again, enunciating every word, just as Aidan instructed.

And he waits.

After a moment, he exhales, frustrated. "Dude! This isn't working!"

"Well," Inez pouts. "That's a bummer! I really thought we'd come up with a clever—"

"Wait!" Patrick raises his hand. "Hold on a second." 

He shifts on his feet uncomfortably, first jiggling his left leg, then his right.

And then, confused, he jiggles his left leg again. "Yeah," he drawls. "I think it might have worked after all..." He frowns. "...sort of."

"What do you mean, sort of?" Aidan asks incredulously.

Patrick grimaces. "I seem to have... um..." He pauses for a long moment, then blows out a breath. "I seem to have lost my boxers."

Jake spits out a laugh.

Patrick shoots him the laser look of death, and Jake turns away and coughs into his fist, trying his best to stifle it.

Patrick turns back to Aidan and glowers. "What have you done?!"

"ME?!" Aidan squeaks, shooting a helpless look over at Inez who quietly takes a step back, and lips pressed tightly together, looks up innocently at the sky. If she could whistle right now, she would.

"But... but..." Aidan stutters. "It worked when we tested it on Crick!" he cries.

"That's true," Inez says quietly in their defense. "For a butler, he was a very good sport about it too."

"Aidan..." Patrick growls. "Do something!"

"Okay, okay, okay!" Aidan holds his hands up as if he fears Patrick will hit him. Or worse, turn into a bear and eat him! "Let me try reversing the spell," he says hopefully. He clears his throat and recites a different spell. "Solve fasciculos magicae!"

But nothing happens, and Patrick's eyes narrow as his growl deepens. "It's still not working!" he bites out between gritted teeth.

"Well... that's not entirely true," Aidan responds.

"What do you mean?!" Patrick barks.

Slowly and silently, Aidan raises his hand and points over Patrick's shoulder.

Inez gasps, "Oh, dear!" She covers her mouth with both hands.

Jake looks up, coughs violently, and then doubles over, laughing.

Patrick turns around and follows their gazes, then cries out, "Dude!" He whips around and glares at Aidan in disbelief. "Seriously?!"

Planting his hands on his hips, Aidan cocks his head. "Well, that's odd. I wonder how that happened?"

"DUDE!" Patrick says again to get Aidan to focus on the far more pertinent issue. "I don't give a rat's ass how it happened! I am NOT, under any circumstances, walking around this campus..." He leans in and scowls in Aidan's face. "...commando-style!"

He points to the uppermost branch of the giant oak tree where his boxer shorts are now flapping wildly in the wind.

"So, you've got fifteen seconds..." Patrick grits out, "to figure out... how... to get my shorts... out... of the tree!"

"Yeah, yeah, okay, sure!" Aidan says in a panic. He turns to Inez, eyes flashing both helplessness and fear.

Inez shrugs, feeling just as helpless, baffled as to what might have gone wrong. "Maybe we left something out?" she says feebly.

"Oh, man!" Jake chuckles as he pulls his phone out of his back pocket and begins to scroll. "Ava's gonna love this one!"

Patrick's glare of death returns. "Don't even think about it!" he growls, the bear in him threatening to emerge.

Jake's laughter fades as he reconsiders and tucks his phone back into his pocket. "Yeah, we should probably just focus on your shorts."

"Um, Patrick," Inez intervenes gently, "why don't you and Jake sit over there." She points to a cluster of boulders nearby. "Aidan and I will put our heads together and figure this whole thing out."

"Yeah," Aidan adds feebly. "Sit down, take a load off, and just um..." He raises his hands towards the clear sky. "...enjoy the wonderful weather we're having! It's such a beautiful day, to just, you know chill!" He flashes a broad, hopeful smile. "Because, in all honesty, this might take a little while." His grin widens, pleading for absolution, if not forgiveness.

***

Sebastian is walking across the quad, headed for his room when he notices Ella sitting at one of the outdoor tables in the courtyard, reading a book. Even though he has to pack for his mission, he decides to take a detour.

He stands across from her at the table. "So, why didn't you tell me you were the Headmaster's daughter?"

Ella closes her book and looks up at him sheepishly. "I'm terribly sorry about that. It wasn't very nice of me, was it?" She shrugs. "We were having such a lovely conversation. I didn't want to ruin it."

"A lovely conversation?!" Sebastian scoffs. "I wouldn't call psychoanalyzing a complete stranger, out of the blue, a conversation!"

Ella laughs appreciatively. "I know. I'm terrible. I've really got to stop doing that. Perhaps I should just learn to censor myself?"

"No, no, no. Don't do that." Sebastian murmurs as he moves closer to her. "Don't ever censor yourself, please. People censor themselves far too much in life." He smiles sheepishly. "I find it makes for rather inauthentic interactions."

"Oh, I see." Ella arches a brow and tilts her head playfully. "And I take it you always prefer to present your most authentic self to people, is that what you're implying?"

"Well..." Sebastian says with a shrug and a laugh.

"Mm-hmm...." Ella nods. Then, she leans forward and props her chin in the palm of her hand. "I can tell there's a story somewhere in the midst of that very vague reply of yours." She gestures to the empty space next to her. "Please, continue."

Sebastian cracks a big smile as he takes a seat. Oh, he likes this girl!

He leans back in his chair, laces his hands behind his head, and kicks his legs out beneath the table.

Oh, yes. He's determined to get to know Ella much, much better... Headmaster Pierce be damned!

**********

A/N - Aidan, oh, Aidan... 🤦🏽‍♀️

Honestly, that's all I can say. 😂

See you next week!

~ Paula ❤️