The Photo of Deborah Grey

Chapter 1

The camera had been extremely hard to find and Deborah had acquired it just in time. Even though she looked no more than 30, at 92 years old, even the most potent magic in the world could no longer extend her life for more than a few more days.

The camera, however was not of this world but instead had come from hell itself. The stories said that it had been created by Lucifer over a hundred years ago as photography had become common place. It was part of a deal he had made for the soul of a powerful warlock. The camera captured the soul of whoever's photo was taken and granted them immortality.

Of course like all objects touched by the devil, there was always a tradeoff to be had. In this case, there were two. First the person in the photo could never look at the photo, it would undo the magic and they would rapidly progress to their real chronological age.

The second catch with the camera was that when it captured the person's image, it distorted it. It was different for each person the camera was used on, but in the case of the first warlock, the distorted photo had shown him as a crippled man in a wheel chair. As long as the subject remained healthy and uninjured, there was no other effect. However each time the subject was critically hurt, or fell deathly ill, they would trade some part of themselves of that which was in the photo.

Deborah had known this since she started to look for the camera almost 60 years ago. She was no fool and knew that no matter how powerful of a witch she would become, death would eventually claim her.

And she was a very powerful witch, perhaps the most powerful in the world. She had gained a fortune through her powers and had used both to track down the camera. The last owner, a withered old man named Adam, had been very stubborn about selling it even though he had never used it himself.

He had finally relented when one of his grandchildren had become ill and there was no cure available. He had come to her to use her power to heal the child and she of course had made the deal for the camera. However if he had known she had been the source of the illness, she was sure there would have been a much different result.

No matter, she now possessed the camera and was ready to use it. It was large and made of wood, sitting on top of its own tripod it stood at least 5 feet tall and had a long set of bellows to focus with. On the back was an empty space where a film cartridge was to be place. Calling them film did not do them justice. They were large plates, 4 inches by 6 inches, and each one was contained in its own wooden case. No developing was required as the magic imbued in the cartridges revealed the image directly on the film.

Setting up a makeshift studio in her mansion, Deborah had dressed herself in her finest attire for the occasion. A professional looking business suit jacket and a simple white blouse with pants. She wore her hair short and had kept her natural dark black hair color. She wore no jewelry except a simple set of stud ear rings and a jeweled watch on her wrist.

The camera would normally have been operated by someone else, however she knew she would have to undo the spells maintaining her youthful appearance and health and refused to allow anyone see her as she really was. She was vain, but with power vanity often followed even for the best of intentioned people and she had never been that.

Triggering the camera remotely would normally not have presented a problem, a simple enough spell would depress the shutter button and it would be done. She knew that as she un-cast the spells keeping her alive there was a risk that she would not be able to weave even this simple of spell. Instead she had enchanted the stone she now held in her hand, all she had to do was drop the stone and as soon as it hit the floor the camera would take the photo.

With everything prepared, she sat on a simple armchair in front of the camera and began undoing decades of spells. First the cosmetic ones, each revealing a flaw she had concealed. The discoloration of her skin, then the wrinkles, the grey in her hair and finally the sagging.

Next the longevity spells. The aches and pains started small, the arthritis hit hard but the deterioration of her eyesight followed closely behind. Then as the last spell was removed, she felt her chest tighten and her vision start to fade completely. The last thing she heard before she lost consciousness was the sound of the stone hitting the floor.

* * *

Deborah woke up moments later, slumped in the chair and her chest on fire but she was alive!

The camera sat silently in front of her and she knew it had worked, she felt invigorated even without the spells in place. She also knew there was a lot of work ahead of her, while she was now immortal, she was still in the body of a 92 year old woman.

Rising from the chair her body screamed in pain as she shuffled over to the camera. When she had slid the cartridge in to the camera just a few short minutes ago, she had had no problem reaching it on its tripod, but now, hunched over and no longer near her previous 5 foot 10 stature she struggled to straighten herself upright and remove it.

Careful not to look at the photo as she removed it from the camera, she replaced the wooden case over it to ensure its safe keeping. She did not know what the distorted image looked like and did not want anyone else to see it either.

Deborah had not known what to expect from the camera and had prepared a few potions as precautions depending upon what effect the camera would have on her age. She had placed them on a small table beside the camera in open glasses in case she was unable to open the bottles that usually contained them. She picked up the last one in the line and managed to drink it down through the pain in her joints.

A temporary youth potion, it quickly turned back the clock until she stood erect once more appearing to be her normal 30 year old self.

Chapter 2

Deborah had spent weeks preparing for the marathon series of spells to undo the aging process and permanently return her youth to her. She had cast all these spells before but that had been over decades and many could be deadly if she made a mistake.

Her newly acquired immortality however gave her even more ego than before and so she had planned on doing them all over the next eight to ten hours.

The temporary youth potion was due to wear off shortly and she had cleared enough space in her casting room for all the books and reference material she would need.

The first spell would be to simply inhibit any pain during the process. Between the various physical ailments she would have once her body returned to its natural age and some of the spells that would be physically unpleasant.

Next would be to restore her eyesight, casting powerful spells like these was a tricky business and unlike simple day to day spells these could not simply be memorized. The books were an integral part of the magic and the last thing she needed was to miss cast one because she couldn't see the words and symbols she needed to cast.

The next series of spells would cure various other ailments, arthritis, cancer, diabetes, alzheimers and others. Then finally she would cast the youth and beauty spells.

Dressed in her casting robe she sat in the middle of her casting circle waiting for the youth potion to wear off, when she saw the skin on the back of her hands start to wrinkle, she knew it had begun.

Bracing herself for the onslaught of pain that would quickly follow, she focused on the pain spell in the book in front of her. She needed to wait until the temporary youth spell had completely expired to ensure nothing would interfere with the precise series of castings she had prepared.

After what seemed like an eternity she felt the last of the youth potion drain from her and the full weight of her 92 year old body return.

The pain caused her to miscast the pain relief spell three times before finally getting it right and each time the pained worsened. Finally on the fourth attempt she managed to complete the spell successfully and the pain passed quickly.

The eyesight spell was not so forgiving and she knew this would be the trickiest part of the night. She carefully studied the text in front of her, focusing on each word to ensure she was confident of it. Then she began to cast, speaking the rights out loud and drawing the symbols in the air in front of her.

Everything proceeded well at first, her eye sight started to rapidly improve, which is when she saw her mistake. A simple enough error, she had drawn all the required symbols but had missed a single dot above one of them.

Her eye sight suddenly became even sharper, more defined. So much so that every little detail in the room became evident to her. Her mind racing to process so much information began to hurt even through the pain spell. Looking down she noticed a single bright red drop on her robe, which was promptly followed by another.

Grabbing her nose to stop the bleeding she realized it was instead coming from her eyes and then everything went dark. The pain intensified and she could now feel rivers of blood flowing down her face. As she tried to stop the bleeding she realized it was too late, she was starting to feel light headed and knew she had only a few more seconds before it would be over.

Then an even deeper darkness came as she died once more.

* * *

Deborah woke up this time in a pool of her own blood. She could again, though only as well as before she had started casting the spell. Drawing herself upright she found a strange weight on her head. Her previously short black hair was now at least 3 feet long and very, very blonde. It hung down over her robe in what looked like a waterfall of golden color.

While it did concern her she knew there would be consequences from the camera's magic and now was not the time to deal with them. She was once again focused on the spell to restore her eyesight. A second casting worked and she could see the mess the failed attempt had left. Blood had sprayed everywhere including over some of the spell books she needed to complete her tasks for the night.

Retrieving another spell book from her library to help with the cleanup she spent the next four hours removing the blood from the room and books. Once completed, she again set to the task of returning her youth and beauty to herself.

The spells to cure her physical problem proceeded without any issues, but did take longer than she had thought. By the time she had completed the entire series of spells, it had taken her 7 hours and she had been casting virtually continuously for over 12.

She was tired and knew it was time to call it a night. She stood up from her chair and walked towards the door, when she caught her reflection in a mirror. She had the internals of a young woman, but the image of a 92 year old wrinkled hag staring back.

She hated how she looked, her vanity got the best of her and she turned around and returned to the casting circle.

She started casting the first of the youth spells, which removed the wrinkles. Then another spell to smooth her skin and remove all the blemishes. After 3 more hours she was down to the last spell she would have to cast, to lock everything in place and maintain her beauty forever.

Her eyes were heavy from the castings and long night, as she began the final spell she could feel the powerful magic move through her. As she neared the end of the casting she recited the words to finalize the spell and missed a syllable due to her extreme fatigue.

The effect was immediate and instead of just stopping the aging process the spell stopped all the processes in her body. From breathing to her thoughts, she remained perfectly still until she died for the third time.

* * *

Deborah inhaled deeply as life returned to her body, she felt alive once more. But something was wrong, things didn't look right and only when she stood up from her casting circle did she realize what. She was shorter than before. And not just a bit shorter, a lot shorter, at least 6 inches and maybe more.

Her robe felt large and pooled at her feet as she stood in the casting circle. Hiking up her robe she knew it had been another effect of the camera. She was exhausted though and if the night had taught her anything it was that it was time to get some rest and deal with her hair and height tomorrow.

As she passed the mirror once more on her way out, she could see youth and beauty had returned. Her sharpe features showed just enough age to command respect without looking old.

Chapter 3

Two days later when Deborah finally awoke, she could hear the servants working in the house. She had sent them home early the day she was casting and given them specific instructions to not disturb her when they returned.

Now the gnawing of hunger brought her fully awake and she quickly proceeded to the bathroom. Looking in the mirror brought back the reality of the changes she had undergone, her long blonde hair still look perfect, it was just no longer the color or the short cropped look she preferred. The reduction in height on the other hand was even more significant than she had at first thought. She was no more than 5 feet tall at most.

'A trifle to fix tonight once I've had some food.' she thought to herself.

After a quick shower she returned to her bedroom and picked out a simple pair of pants and a t-shirt to wear. Neither fit any longer, but a quick fitting spell fixed that and she headed down the ornate main stair case and to the kitchen for breakfast.

The staff was professional but she could tell they were surprised to see such major changes in their employer. Several had stared openly before her cold hard gaze had turned them back to their chores. She maintained a strict work environment and gave no quarter to lazy people or those that wasted their or her time.

After devouring the breakfast that had been prepared she was still famished.

"I'm going out to the patio, bring me a plate of fruit, some cereal and toast." she commanded the maid.

"Yes mam."

Deborah headed towards the large french doors that led to her patio and pool area, she opened them and stepped across the threshold of the house. Instantly she knew something was wrong, an electric twinge crawled up her spine that then became a full on surge of energy.

'Crap, the security system...' she thought as the pain hit and she collapsed to the floor. She had setup the system to stop any warlock or witch that tried to come in to her home without her permission. It was not supposed to attack her but with the changes she had gone through these last few days she could only guess it no longer recognized her as an allowed guest of the house and so was doing its job.

Her screams brought several of the servants and they witnessed Deborah withering in pain on the floor. It lasted several minutes until she died for the fourth time.

* * *

Once Deborah's body had stopped twitching, the staff had pulled it back in to the house and witnessed a miracle as she came back to life. The stares were even more pronounced then earlier.

"Back to work everyone, nothing to see here!" she yelled. The staff almost jumped out of their skin as they rushed from the room.

Once more something didn't feel right to Deborah. She feared what effect the camera had on her this time, but she first had to deal with the security system. A quick spell reset it to recognize her as the owner and she then proceeded back in to the kitchen.

Her skin was crawling, itching almost to the point where she wanted to scream, but hunger drove her even more as she needed to eat. Dying apparently caused one to be very hungry when they finally came back to life.

First fruit, then a pitcher of orange juice and almost a complete box of cereal finally calmed her hunger. With no other immediate need maintaining her attention she became fully aware of her desire to get out of the clothes she was wearing. Running back up the stairs to her bedroom she stripped out of her clothes and found herself at ease.

Examining herself in the mirror she could not see any physical change to her body. Her attention drifted to her still open closet and she felt unhappy with what she saw within it. All the clothes contained in it where dreary, drab and so conservative. She needed a change, something fun and light. Something to show off her body in.

And that is when it hit her, the change had not been physical, but mental. She tried to think of her best suit and how she loved the way it projected confidence. Instead the first thought that came to mind was that she would never wear anything so boring.

Deborah tried to think of the perfect outfit to wear out to a formal dinner, like the full length gown she had worn just weeks before to the annual witches gala. Instead the image in her mind was that of a tight black dress, which barely covered her privates. It had no back in it and the front was split in two, starting below her belly button and joined only behind her neck.

Instead of the simple flats she had worn to the gala, this new image had on sky high heels. The simple bracelet and necklace she had worn were replaced by large shinny bangles and a wide choker around her neck. The simple stud ear rings were nowhere to be found and instead large hoops that almost reached her shoulders graced her ear lobes.

The camera had messed with her fashion sense.

She tried on several different outfits from her closet but could not wear any of them. As soon as she finished putting them on the discomfort came back. She tried several spells to alleviate it, but nothing worked. Eventually she relented, she took the jeans she had been wearing and cast the fitting spell again, making them in to a pair of shorts and likewise fitted the shirt to where it was comfortable.

She tried some shoes and jewelry until she found a comfortable level that her new fashion sense would accept and then went over to the mirror to see how she looked.

Deborah stared in to the mirror and frowned. The four inch heals were not terrible, but the shorts reveal almost everything. Likewise the simple white t-shirt looked at least one size too small and only came to only a few inches below her breasts.

The neckline plunged down to show off what cleavage her small c cup breasts could manage and expose a large part of her chest. Her now long blonde hair fell down on each side and framed her face in a halo of golden tresses. The ends of her hair rested just about half way between her neck and her nipples, pointing straight down as if drawing everyone's attention to her breasts.

She did not have much jewelry, but wore several bracelets on each wrist and had the largest ear rings she owned. Several intertwined necklaces finished off the look.

* * *

Once again in her casting room she poured over the spell books, finding several spells that might help with her hair and height. The fashion sense was another thing all together though. The closest spells she could find were compulsion spell. They were nasty business and seldom turned out as expected. There was no reversal spells for them, all she could do would be to add a new compulsion to dress more conservatively and hope it would be powerful enough to override the camera.

Preparing to cast her first spell, she removed her jewelry and clothes to change in to her casting robe. The skin crawling sensation returned as soon as she had finished pulling the robe over her head and she could not continue. The casting robe was a ceremonial robe as the best way to cast spells was naked. The robe was voluminous and through magic stayed away from her skin to allow the caster to maintain her modesty. Now it was no longer possible, her new fashion sense would not let her cover up so much of her body. She removed the robe and sat naked in the casting circle.