Pete's Tools

"Maybe there's something at the big gift shop at the entrance to the park," Jim mumbled to himself as he left the Mickey's Toontown gift shop. He eventually needed to get something for his wife. She couldn't come with him on the business trip because there was only one free day during the week full of meetings, so he decided to head to the Magic Kingdom to get a souvenir and enjoy a day at the park.

He made his way through Toontown passing Mickey's and Minnie's houses which looked like they were straight out of a cartoon, and he chuckled a little at the children playing in the water around Donald's boat. Then he came upon Pete's Body Shop. Taking a look inside, he checked to see if there were any souvenirs. No luck. It looked mostly like face painting and temporary tattoos. Walking out, he almost tripped over a toolbox sitting just off the sidewalk.

As if it were part of the display, the box didn't move at all when he kicked it. Either way, Jim didn't want anyone else to trip over it, so he bent down to pick it up and move it farther off the sidewalk.

As soon as he grasped it, he felt a tingle run up his arm. He looked around hoping that it wasn't some security alarm. He quickly tried to set the toolbox down, but he couldn't let go of the handle. Trying his best to loosen his grip, his hand held the toolbox firmly.

That's when he noticed his hand. Surprisingly, he was wearing a three-fingered white glove like the kind that many of the Disney characters wore.

While he was wondering where that came from, he noticed black fur starting to grow on his arm. It started spreading upwards from the glove. He tried brushing it off with his free hand to no avail.

Looking around in panic, Jim saw a little girl pointing at him with an excited look on her face. Her mother wasn't paying any attention at all. Behind the woman and child, Jim saw several park employees coming his way. They looked confused but determined as they approached him.

"Sir," one of the men said. "Will you come with us?"

"I didn't mean to pick it up," Jim said as apologetically as panicking would allow him.

One of the other men motioned forward. "It's alright, sir. Just come with us."

After giving up trying to drop the toolbox, Jim followed the employees as they took him to a nearby entrance to the restricted areas. The tingling spread even more as he walked. His clothes felt tighter, and he noticed he was a little taller than before.

His other arm was growing black fur, too. His fingers thickened on his left hand as he watched. The middle and ring finger started to merge before a white glove popped into existence to match the other hand.

"What's happening to me?" Jim asked in a deeper voice.

"You picked up Pete's tool box," one woman said leading him through the halls. "No one has been able to lift it since the last Pete placed it there."

Something grew in front of his face. A black nose! He reached up with his free hand and felt of it. It was definitely his and definitely Pete-like. He also noticed that his chin was much larger than it should be, and he had two big teeth hanging down from the sides of his mouth.

"You mean..." Jim started but cut off as his shirt started tearing from his stomach getting much larger than his shirt and shorts could handle. Managing to loosen his belt buckle, he sighed with relief. His legs were already starting to grow black fur.

The employees opened a door to a room and led him inside. "Here, sir," the woman said, "Just wait here."

Walking in, Jim looked around the room. The door closed behind him. Grumbling, he paced around the room which was painted stark white and contained a lone chair. He took off his backpack and plopped onto the chair hearing his shirt and shorts rip.

Now that he was off of them, he realized his feet hurt, too, so he took off his shoes and socks. The tops of his larger-than-before feet were covered with black fur and only had four toes each.

The door opened. Jim stood quickly and stumbled a little from not being used to his recently gained weight.

"Hello," a man wearing a lab coat said. "I'm Dr. Ledbetter. I see you were able to pick up Pete's toolbox."

Jim held up the toolbox. "Yeah," he grumbled. "And I can't let go of it, see." He tried to open his hand, and it opened. The toolbox fell with a clang scattering tools around the floor.

Startled, Jim jumped back a step. He looked at his hand that had been gripping the toolbox handle. Flexing it a little, he stared at it and then at the doctor.

"I see," Dr. Ledbetter said approaching Jim. Nodding and humming to himself, Dr. Ledbetter examined the sight in front of him. "Yes. I would have to say that you're our new Pete," the doctor said and walked toward the door.

He paused at the door. "Your wife has been notified of your condition and has the option to move here with you or stay in the human world. If she decides to be with you, she'll be Pete's wife Peg. You'll be notified once she decides."

"Wait! I don't want...." Jim yelled but Dr. Ledbetter was gone.

Employees scampered in with some large clothes and shoes. "Here you go, Pete," one of the women said, and they bustled out of the room.

Jim examined the clothes. They were definitely something Pete would wear. Grumbling, he took off what was left of Jim's ripped clothing and put on Pete's clothes. They fit well, and he felt much better.

A door opened on the other side of the room. He didn't notice a door there before. Squinting his eyes from the sunlight, he walked into a brightly lit little town much like Toontown. The door closed behind him. Turning around, he didn't see any sign of the door at all. Looking back toward the town, he saw someone approach him.

It was Mickey Mouse. "Heya, Pete How are you doing?"

"My name's Jim," Jim said. "And I don't know what I'm doing here."

"Welcome to the real Toontown," Mickey said. "This is where the real characters live while the costumed humans are in the parks."

"But, I'm not really Pete," Jim said.

"You are now." Mickey said. "I wasn't always Mickey. Same thing with Donald, Minnie, and the others. We haven't had a Pete live here in years, though."

"I have a wife back home. I'm here on a business trip. There are meetings I have to attend tomorrow."

Mickey shook his head sadly. "Don't worry about that stuff. You have a life here. Just go check out your house." Mickey pointed down the street to a house with a large garage.

Grumbling, Jim walked down the street to the house. The mailbox had his name on it already. Well, it had Pete's name, not Jim's.

Jim opened the door and walked inside. A mirror hung on the wall. Getting the nerve to finally look at what happened to his face, he made his way over to the mirror. What he saw shocked him. It was like he was looking at a cartoon Pete come to life. The big mouth and chin, the black fur, the pointed ears, the round nose, everything about him was Pete.

Then it felt like he had been knocked in the head. Memories flooded into his brain. He remembered being Pete and living in the house. He remembered being annoyed by Mickey, Donald and Goofy.

"Hi ya, Petey," came a silly sounding voice from the entrance to the door. It was Goofy.

"What do you want?" Pete asked. "I just move in, and you're already bugging me."

"I'm just welcoming you to the neighborhood," Goofy said walking in and tripping on the threshold. "I see you've already picked up Pete's personality."

Pete scowled. "So what if I did? It doesn't mean I'm not me." Was he really Pete? Was he Jim? Luckily, his human memories were still there and easily accessible, but they seemed like a lifetime ago.

"Pete, are you alright?" Goofy asked looking concerned. "I know it's difficult the first few days."

Pete snapped out of it. "Of course, I'm alright, Goof. Now, get out of my house."

Goofy grinned and left. "Good to see ya again, Pete."

Slamming the door behind Goofy, Pete plopped into his recliner. Things should settle in his head eventually. However, he was bound and determined to not completely loose track of Jim. Maybe it won't be too bad being Pete, and hopefully Peg will be living with him soon.