When I said enthusiastic stroll, I really meant as soon as I took one step after Julia left, I nearly fell over. Her drink was clearly spiked with some sort of drug. I don’t think I want to continue a beautiful night’s stroll while light-headed and feeling like hot garbage. I reluctantly returned to the dorm.
Learning about Julia’s meta-human status shed light on the university’s unique position. I learned a lot just sitting next to her while waiting for the taxi. Like how badass my powers are. I really kicked ass and saved someone like a real super hero.
I found myself standing in front of the mirror, seeing a very beautiful waif-looking girl. I was always told that HRT would make me look younger. But while my transition didn’t involve HRT, it still made me much younger than I remember. I’m betting I could fit in with a gaggle of middle schoolers and no one would take a second glance at me. With all that’s been going on these past few days, I haven’t even had time to explore myself. My eyes for example: they’re this gorgeous, gleaming amber, but the pupils look so much different, a whole lot more cat-like. As though my eyes are a combination of cat-eyes and human-eyes. Which is really cool and really adorable, makes me look like I have big, innocent eyes. So doing a cat girl cosplay this Halloween.
Another thing about my body that I’m noticing is that it’s really underdeveloped. I weighed myself, I'm ninety-three pounds. I can only assume that I’m smaller now since I have to wear Fiona’s clothing which somewhat fits me. Fiona was a very curvey woman. Many of her clothes were baggy on me. My old shirts still fit in a girl-wearing-her-boyfriend's-shirt kind of way. It was very cute.
Changing you costed much of your mass. Which is why you are very thin and also why you consume much substance. Your body is trying to compensate for the lost mass and keep you from total starvation.
That doesn’t sound good.
“Makes sense, I guess. Why isn’t my body growing faster?”
It will grow in time, little flower. I did not push your body’s growth further because I feared it would damage you. Not physically but mentally. Even if you love your new body, you need time to get used to it.
It reminded me of when I tried to pee, and I ended up peeing all over myself, “I get it. Being a girl is work.”
It can be but doesn’t have to. Being a girl is only as hard as you make it.
“Thank Carmie.”
I felt a glare, Car… mie?
“Yeah, it’s a cute nickname I just thought up.”
I am a witch that has lived for 300 years, give or take. I have slaughtered both men and monsters alike, and now you are giving me such a crude nickname.
“Yes, yes I am. Love ya, Carmie!” I giggled, feeling her pout, “It’s okay, Carmie, not all of us can have adorable nicknames like you.” There was a scream and several sounds of things breaking. I couldn't help but giggle. Wait, why was there stuff in my head?
It was nine o’clock, and the sun was halfway in the sky. The birds were singing, and many of the students began loading up their cars to go home. I nervously paced my dorm room. Not just out of anxiety but out of trying to keep me awake. I grabbed a coffee to keep me up.
Why am I trying to keep myself awake? So, I can call mom and let her know what happened. What is pacing accomplishing? Not a lot, but it is giving me moments to think about how I’m going to tell her that her little boy (whose never been her little boy to begin with) is now her little girl. Will she think it’s all a prank? That someone stole my phone? Will she accept my explanation? What are we going to do about dad? Good ole Pop is a supreme H1er.
Not even mentioning that Fiona’s mother may be coming over today. Then again, I haven’t ever heard much from Fiona about her mother. How do I even explain to her mom that she was murdered? Hopefully, someone had already told her and just retrieved her stuff. I hope that’s the case, I’d like to ask about keeping it since she’s not using it. I hope Fiona doesn’t mind.
Worrying about it isn’t going to help you, little flower. Rip the bandage off now, so that misunderstandings are near impossibility.
“You’re right. I should, I’m just scared.”
Carmilla hugged me mentally, calming me down just a bit, I can’t imagine how you feel, little flower. The changes for me happened right in front of everyone, so I never had to worry about people not knowing who I am.
“You had changes too?”
Yup, I was just like you. A boy wanting to be a girl.
I blinked a few times from the realization, “YOU’RE TRANS?!?!”
Oh, there’s a word for it now? Yes, I guess I am this trans. I had joined the Austrian army and rose up in rank when they needed candidates for a certain experiment, I volunteered immediately. The experiment turned me into what you are. After that I trained and was sent on a mission to kill Dracula and his vampire horde.
“Wow, I uh, don’t even know what to think. My ancestor is trans, a lesbian, and a kick-ass witch. What a twist!”
Yes, well don’t go around telling people about it.
I nodded, “I better get this call done and over with.” I felt a whole lot less nervous about the whole thing. Even a bit prideful that my ancestor is a hot-ass trans lesbian witch who slayed monsters. If she can do all of that, then I can make one simple little call. I whipped out my phone and dialed the number.
There was a bit of ringing before mom picked up, “Hey, sweetie, was just about to call you.”
“Hey mom, I need to tell you something.”
“You sound a bit different; do you have a cold?”
“No, I need to tell you something really important.”
“What’s that?”
My heart pumped loudly as I spoke with pride, “I’m a girl now!”
“Oh, sweetie, that’s nothing new. You’ve always been showing signs since you were young. Don’t tell your dad, though. You know what he’s like.”
“No no, mom, I’m telling you that I got physically and biologically turned into a girl.”
“Congratulations on getting on hormones, sweetie! Your voice is really pretty. What’s the name you’re going by now?”
The euphoria I was given from how supportive my mom is was incredible, but she wasn’t getting it, “Ophelia-”
“Ophelia is such a pretty name. Fabulous choice! Do you mind if I call you Ophy for short?”
“Of course, mom, but I need to tell you that my body has changed a lot and now is physically female.”
“No wonder why you’re been wearing all those hoodies. I always knew something was different about you lately. Anyway, Ophy, I’m getting on the highway, and you know how I am about driving. I’ll catch you later, sweetheart. Love ya!”
“Love you too, mom.” She hung up. I stood there, not really knowing whether or not to cry from the misunderstanding, laugh at the misunderstanding, or cry happy tears that my mom loves and supports me. Instead, I just flopped on my bed and did a combination of all three.
At least until there was a knock on my door, “Ophelia? It’s Agent Arthur Wallace. Are you here?”
"What!" I leaped of the bed only to fall off the bed and land face first.
"Ophelia, are you okay?"
"I'm fine, come in."
He came in, “Good morning, Miss Ophelia. Hope I’m not coming at a bad time.” He sat down on Fiona’s bed.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
I smiled, “No, just finished calling my mom.”
“How did that go?”
“Wonderfully in a weird, misunderstanding way. She thought I was coming out as uh trans haha. Which I guess I am in a way. Would you mind staying here with me? I think having a DSA agent here with help the misunderstanding.”
Arthur gave me a handsome smile, “Of course.” He pulled out his bag, and it was like a void when he opened it. He stuck his hand in and pulled out a folder. “Here, you remember that hair I took yesterday?”
I raised a brow, “Yeah?” Blushing a tad bit from the memory of my embarrassment.
“Well, I got the paperwork back today. It’s quite interesting if you give yourself a moment to read it.” Giving me the packet.
I am not good at science. At least hard science. If you wanna talk about psychology and the human mind, then I’m always free to talk about that. I’m very interested in it as I wanted to be like my mom, a therapist. When it comes to hard science like this, I’m terrible at it. I barely passed high school and college math. So, when I skimmed over the documents, I had no idea what it was talking about, “Uuuuh, can you give me the cliff notes?” I gave a sheepish smile.
“You’re a baseline,” That's a shock but considering that I’ve been chewing on Julia’s words since last night not quite of a shock, “And you turned biologically sixteen.”
My eyes were dry from how wide they opened, “Wut?”
“You are a sixteen-year-old baseline girl.” He repeated with finality.
“Can you give me a moment? I think I need to process this?”
The agent nodded, “Of course, I’ll be waiting outside.”
I waited until he left before I shrieked, “WHAT THE FUCK DID HE MEANT THAT I’M A SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD GIRL?!”
Calm down, little flower. It’s not the end of the world.
“NOT THE END OF THE WORLD?!?! I’LL HAVE TO GO THROUGH HIGHSCHOOL FUCKING AGAIN!!!!! YOU HAVE ANY CLUE HOW PAINFUL HIGH SCHOOL WAS?!?”
No I don’t but I’m sure it wasn’t—
“They ignored and neglected me, for fuck sakes. I felt so alone I thought it didn’t matter if I died or not. I wasn’t just being ignored by my peers but by my father too. The only saving grace was my mom who tried her best with me. There’s been too TOOO many times I’ve tried to kill myself not even due to loneliness, but also because my body was changing into some freakish, masculine, disgusting monster!! AND I HAVE TO GO THROUGH THAT FUCKING BULLSHIT AGAIN!”
Little flower, Carmilla cooed. You're overreacting. Think about it, little flower. This is your second chance at being a teen. Take deep breaths and think about it.”
I sniffled as I wiped away the tears “I’m sorry, Carmilla, I was overreacting. I just… high school was terrible for me.”
It’s okay to feel your feelings, little flower. I’ve never gone to school, but I know how it feels to be alone alone. I spent many centuries alone with no one who understood me. And when I found someone who did they passed through my fingers with the shortness of human life. I thought about ending it all too many times.
I sniffled, “You did?”
It’s embarrassing, but I did.
I wiped my eyes, “Wow, thank you for sharing. I can’t imagine living for that long.”
I heard her sad smile, “You will, eventually.”
Even though I didn’t see-see Carmilla, I could still see her in my mind’s eye. We stared at each other and enjoyed the moment until the door knocked again, “Who is it?”
The door opened, “It's me." It was mom. "Why is there a DSA Agent standing outside you… Oh.” Mom started at me eyes, wide with shock.
I gave her a haggard smile, “Hey, mom, remember when I said I’m physically and biologically a girl?” I grinned as wide as I could, “This is what I meant.”
Mom didn’t say anything as she slowly sat down, and inspected me. Her eyes narrowed, “Are you sure, you’re my kid?”
“I’m very sure.” I called Arthur, “Hey, Agent Arthur, does that folder have anything about my blood relation to my family?”
“Yes. Everything that proves you are you is in the folder.” He replied.
“Thanks, I figured you’d make sure that I’m actually me.”
Mom, “Who is the DSA Agent?”
Arthur held out his hand, “Agent Arthur Wallace, ma’am.” Mom took it, “I was here for something else when I found your daughter. She’s quite a charmer.”
I blushed and got the butterflies. He’s so handsome it hurts.
Mom, “You don’t sound American. Can I see your badge?”
The agent gave her his badge, “I’m actually a duel citizen, grew up in the UK but joined the American Military when I was young. My mum is British, dad American.”
Mom toyed with the badge for a moment before giving it back, “Is she really my kid.”
Arthur gave her the folder, “Very much so, she’s a hundred percent your kid when we matched her to the database. She’s also sixteen now.”
Mom looked through it for a few minutes before looking up at me with tear-filled eyes, “Oh baby, what happened to you?”
Tears dredged up once more, “I don’t really know mom, I had a dream and a woman named Mircalla was in it. When I woke up, I found myself changed.” I looked away, “It’s been the best days of my life, but I'm so scared.”
“Oh baby, come here.” She opened her arms, and I fell into them. We both cried for we knew that things were going to be hectic, “I don’t think I have to tell you how your dad is gonna take it.”
I nodded, “What are we gonna do?”
Mom smiled, “Well, first, we’re gonna get a new wardrobe. You have such ill-fitting clothes.” She looked over to the agent, “Do you want to join us.”
He gave a meek smile, “I’d love to but I don’t do so well with shopping. I do need to set an appointment with your daughter about power testing.”
Mom nodded, “I’ll be outside, if you need me.” Mom exited.
Arthur, “You have such a wonderful mom.”
I smiled, “One of the best.” I stood up and stretched, “So what’s this about power testing?”
The shopping was great. Mom kept pushing me away from dark clothes arguing that I needed light clothes. All I want to be is a cute goth girl. God damn her! I did get a lot of dark clothes too, with some reluctance from mom. Even got me a pair of kick-ass pilot shades.
The appointment with the DSA for power testing next morning. Arthur said he’d drive me, which is lovely that I get to spend some alone time with him. I’m more excited about hanging out with Agent Handsome than being poked and prodded. Damn the necessary evils.
Now, Mom and I sat at a café drinking, our spoils of shopping in the car, chatting about anything and everything. She’d ask me how the semester was, and I’d give some non-committal answer. Admittedly terrible. I’d ask her how was dad, and she’d also give a non-committal answer. Also probably terrible. She asked me about Fiona, and I told her I didn’t want to talk about it.
There was a dreadful silence between us for many moments. Mom was the one who spoke first, “You should stay at the college.”
I nodded, “What I was thinking, just one problem with that.”
“What?”
“All the people who stay at uni must sign up for it. The deadline for that has already passed.”
“Oh.” She breathed. There was another dreadful silence as we both thought about what to do. Then I remembered Julia from last night. Maybe she can help.
“I think I have a friend who’ll let me stay with her.”
“You think?”
“Well, I did kinda save her from being raped. So maybe she’ll let me stay for a while.”
Mom brow rose in surprised. Her proud smile made me warm and fuzzy. “You know, if you’re not careful you’ll turn into a superhero.”
I replied with a sheepish smile, “I don’t think superheroes have my kind of power.”
Mom gave me a curious eye, “So you do have superpowers.”
“I do… though they’re uuuuuuuh very interesting.”
“Well, go on, tell me about them.”
“Well, you see,” I have no idea how my power works.
Carmilla here to save the day, The short answer is you consume blood that transfers lifeforce to you which converts into mana. Which is then stored in a special organ near your heart. Or not.
“Basically, I’m a witch who drinks blood to get mana.” Is how I understood it.
Quite an apt way to put it.
“So, you’re a witch that drinks blood… Like a vampire?”
“Yes mom, like a vampire. Even my eyes are more sensitive to the sun, and I’m pretty sure I’ll get sunburn if I stay in the sun too long.”
“So that’s why you’re still wearing those sunglasses. Wow, my daughter is a vampire.”
“More like half-vampire or Dhampir, but close enough.”
“Can you do magic?”
I mentally stared at Carmilla as she sighed, Yes, you can do magic. Though right now, I’d rather have you handle the basics before we start doing some of the harder stuff.
“I can do magic, just need to figure out how.”
Mom nodded, accepting the half-ass answer, and we both took a sip of our smoothies, “So what’s going on between you and Agent Wallace?”
I nearly spit out my smoothie, “MOM!”
“What? He’s quite a good-looking man, and I KNOW you’re into him. I see how you look at him.”
I blushed hard,
“And how he looks at you?”
My eyes widened to a degree that they felt dry, “W—Wha?”
“Oh, come on, are you that oblivious? He’s so into you.”
“He’s just being polite. There’s no way he’s into me. I mean, I'm biologically a sixteen! It’d be pedophilia!!”
Mom gave me the ‘do you believe that’ eye, “It doesn’t matter what you biologically are, sweetie, you’re twenty-one both in age, mind, and most importantly legally. He knows this, sweetie. Why not you just ask him out for lunch? It doesn’t have to be a date. Just get to know each other.”
I stammered, “I… I don’t kn—know. I’m just scared because I wasn’t born a girl.”
“Ophelia Jamie Sandusky.” My full name brought me both dread and euphoria, “You are every bit of girl as any other girl. Sure, you didn’t start with the parts you wanted, but you still are a girl. Especially now, you’re a very gorgeous young lady. If I catch you beating yourself now because of some small insignificant thing such as ‘Being born a boy’ again, I will punish you with a girls’ day out!”
I don’t think I have to mention the kind of tears rolling down my cheeks when I hugged mom, “I love you, mommy.”
“I love you too, Ophy.” She pushed back, “Now, what will you do when you see that Agent tomorrow?”
“Uh, ask him to dinner?” I meekly answered with a blush.
“Good girl.” She got up and stretched, “Now let’s get out of here. I need to get to the courthouse sooner rather than later.”
“Why?”
“To divorce your dad, that’s why.”
A wild grin formed upon my face, “Then I think you’re gonna need something before you go.” Do you remember the affair my dad is having? Yeah, I may or may not have screenshotted and clouded many of their lewd conversations. I never thought I was gonna need it until now.