Spells R Us

Spells 'R' Us (also SRU and Spells R Us) is a Shared Universe Web Original created by Bill Hart in the 1990s. It has accumulated a large following throughout the online community, and many stories have been authored for it (though not all of them by Bill Hart).

The series revolves around a supernatural emporium called Spells 'R' Us. The shop is run by a wizard known only as "The Old Man". Most stories typically begin with The Old Man selling some sort of magical product to a disbelieving customer; as the story progresses, the item will be used by somebody (either deliberately or inadvertently), and the intended target will undergo a transformation of some sort — typically a Gender Bender, but Animorphism, age progression, Age Regression, and other sorts of transformations have also occurred. Most stories focus on the ramifications of using the magic item; many end with the transformee stuck that way for the rest of their life.

The series begins with "A Strangeness at The Frat House". The story follows two college students, Chris and Terry, who need to find girls for the frat party or they will be kicked out of the fraternity. Desperate, the boys go to Spells 'R' Us. The Old Man gives them the spell, and "forgets" to tell the boys that for one night, they (and the other frat house students) will become girls in body and mind. Naturally, they botch the spell; now, anyone in the house after 7 a.m. will turn into the opposite sex. While "Crissy" and "Terri" retain their male memories, anyone else acts, thinks, and looks as if they were always female until 2 a.m. (when the spell wears off).

The story was written by Bill Hart, and establishes the universe in which many of his subsequent stories take place. Many fans have now written their own stories involving the shop and the Old Man, though they tend to focus less on the events with Terry and Chris, and more on the other customers of the Old Man (while ignoring Bill Hart's saga). This unofficial canon led to many sub-universes; the most popular of these is Bikini Beach, which revolves around a magical water park operated by an old gypsy witch (known commonly as "Grandmother") who is a good friend of The Wizard.

Most (if not all) of the series and may be found at Fictionmania and BigCloset TopShelf.

Text reproduced courtesy of TV Tropes.