I cursed to myself by the train station on a cold friday night. I had missed my second train to go back home, after finally leaving my house, for the first time in years, for something that was not necessary. All I wanted to do was to be in the company of people like me and now I was stranded somewhere in the middle of a town I didn’t even know. Checking my phone to reveal how far away from home I was made me feel even more disheartened. About an hour and a half away by car, in absolutely optimal conditions. All I could do was call a cab home. It took me about twenty minutes to find a Taxi service that was even willing to drive this far out of their usual district.
“It’s gonna take me a while until I get there.” the cab driver said, her voice sounding very coarse, “About….. Five to ten minutes.” And so I again waited, growing more and more resentful thinking about how badly I had fucked up. How could I think that going out like this was a good idea? The meetup was not bad per se, but it was not great either, and it was certainly not worth the 60 Euros that were about to leave my pocket.
The cab that arrived to take me home was in a state of disarray, an old Toyota Sprinter Trueno with a taxi light stuck crudely on the top. The driver honked, their old car’s horn screeching angrily at me to get in. I went in, the smell of smoke and muffled eurobeat filling my nose and ears as the lady in the driver seat offered her hand.
“Roxy Walker, you wanted to go to Lomsen right?” She asked, typing my address into her little satnav.
“Yeah Lomsen, I know it’s very far away and I am sorry that you have to drive this far but I have to get home somehow.” I said, my voice cracking up a bit.
“Its okay my little guy, as long as I get paid I will drive you to the end of the world.” Her laugh was coarse as she started up the car, the trueno coming back to life as Roxy reversed out of the little speck of nothingness that was the train station into the dark roads of the Black Forest.
“So what was a dude like you doing out here in the middle of nowhere? A bit too much partying cause you to lose your train?” Roxy asked, her eyes running down my body as the darkness consumed the entirety of the road.
“It wasn’t a party, I met up with a few people and it didn’t really go well, and when I tried to get home the transfer ride just got canceled. Thanks Deutsche Bahn!” I nearly shouted, my anger at the whole situation clearly audible to my driver.
“Well if it makes ya feel any better we can stick the big DB with the cost of this ride since they got you into this trouble hun. Gonna need your name and a phone number for the request though, after we make a stop or finish the ride.” She smirked, turning down the volume of the music down.
“Honestly I simply want to go home and relax after this blunder of a day, this has been a disaster in my eyes.” I crossed my arms, hoping that I would be able to catch some sleep now that my driver turned down the music.
“Understandable, but that’s your 69 bucks going down the drain.” She giggled a bit, both of us saying “nice” in unison as I slowly fell asleep.
“Mind if I tell a few stories while I drive?” Roxy inquired, tilting her head towards me as I woke up from my short-lived nap. I had another nightmare, the same nightmare I had been having for about a week and I was not able to figure out why it occurred so often.
“Sure, I guess, as long as it isn’t gonna be boring or something.” She let out a loud giggle, as if what I said was nothing but a big joke.
“I don’t think that I’m able to tell bad stories my dear, now have you ever driven down the black forest this late at night?” She asked, her voice filled with glee as if she was about to unleash something on me.
“No, I can’t really drive so I have no real idea.” I answered, looking outside to the black void that was barely pierced by the trueno’s headlights. There was no one but us in the streets, it felt deserted and lifeless.
“Then I can assure you, this forest is no joke my dearest; the strangest things have happened out here. There have been sudden disappearances, mysterious lights appearing out of nowhere, stairways that lead to nowhere. It all started at one of those stairwells long ago, I wish I could tell you when but my memory is very foggy regarding the date, even if what happened there is fresh on my mind even so long after the fact.” Saying I was intrigued was an understatement. The stairwells that Roxy talked about were far too familiar to me, my nightmares centering about finding one such in the patch of trees near my home. I moved a little bit in my seat, listening intently to what she was going to tell me.
“I was a little younger back when I found my first stairwell, going out with my little doggie; Sir Braksalot. Me and my dog walked and walked until he suddenly sprinted forward, his leash getting out of my grip. I ran after him, quickly getting lost in the wild forest. My little dog yelled as he dashed through the trees, with me sprinting just behind him. And as soon as I was to catch him he stopped dead in front of it. The stairwell. It was the most massive stairwell that I had ever seen, especially in a forest, almost as if it was built for a giant to climb and not some one meter fifty tall twink. My dog yelped at it, as if it was causing him pain but I was fascinated by it. It grabbed my attention, as if it was calling out to me, and I happily obliged, climbing up the stairs ever so slowly. Climbing up was very hard, and after a while everything that was not in the stairwell was simply…. Gone. It was like there was simply this structure and me, with everything and everyone else simply vanishing. The air was filled with dread, something made my body feel heavy, climbing up became more and more taxing... Until I saw her. She was the most beautiful lady I have ever laid my eyes on. A woman as large as an oak tree, a muscular dark skinned goddess with 4 arms. Her eyes were that of a sheep, her hair a short floating sea of starlight. Her body was draped in a dress made out of wool that was painted in a flurry of blue, pink and white. Her voice made me quiver, resonating deep within my body.”
“I have waited for such a long time for our reunion, my dearest. Do you remember me? Or did your rebirth cloud your memories of the time we were together? Or of how I yearned to be as one with you again...” That was when she let the stairwell float off into the darkness below, bringing me face to face with her with one of her big, buff arms. “Can your new body still speak my dearest? I wanted to make it better, but I was so weak and I didn’t wish for your spirit to move in immediately, I had to create something fast... I am terribly sorry how it turned out.” said the goddess, her voice laced with sorrow.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
“I am sorry ma'am but I have no memories of you, I am a simple taxi driver trying to make his ends meet and live a quiet life.” At that, the goddess almost teared up, rubbing her giant cheek on the entirety of my head.
“You don’t remember me anymore Roxy? It is me! La Shay’, the love of your life and the one that granted you my godly blessing. By the stars I am sincerely sorry that it took so long for me to find you again, my rest was far longer than I could have anticipated. Please let me show you your true form.” La Shay’ rubbed two of her hands together, an arcane energy filling my body as I was slowly transformed into the lady I am today. It was amazing seeing the person I always knew I wanted to be finally reflected in my body. It was the moment I was reborn.
“How…. how did you know that I wanted to be a girl?” I asked the deity that was trying not to crush me in a loving embrace.
“Because I have known you in your previous life my dearest and I have seen how much you have ached to have this body inside your soul. It is your truest form given flesh, the most authentic you that you could be. It is the form I had fallen in love with so many decades ago. I will call upon you again my dearest, may you have a pleasant life until then~”
…
“...And that was the story of how I met my wife again thanks to a magical stairwell. I know that it must sound ludicrous but I can assure you that this really did happen to me.”
How did she know so well. This lady that I have never before seen in my life has just described the dreams that I have had for about 7 days now nearly perfectly.
“How do you know…” came out of my mouth without me even noticing, Roxy looking at me with a mischievous smile.
“So she has visited you too. Tell me, what did she say to you hun?” her smile changed to something more warmer, more genuine. It took me a while to collect my thoughts.
“I went up the stairwell as well, going up and up and up but it seemed like it would go on forever before it simply disintegrated underneath me. In front of me was this goddess, she told me that I was her ‘child’ and that she would help me become ‘my true self’. Then she turned my body into something I thought I could only ever dream about, told me to be patient and then I always wake up, in my stupid male body in my little apartment with nothing but anger in me.”
Roxy slowed down the car, stopping it at the side on the road with warning lights turned on.
“Out of the car, now.” She commanded somewhat harshly, my body moving automatically as my mind was unsure what to make out of the situation. Roxy stepped outside, slowly walking up to me as she was shaking a bottle of some pink fluid, undoing the cork that was closing it. “Drink this, now.” I did as she said, somewhat confused as to why she asked me to do all these things before my whole body started to ITCH. It started to get searing hot, every single cell in my body feeling in pain as I rapidly changed, my hair covering my bespectacled eyes, my chest growing to the point of tearing my already too small T-shirt. My pants felt tight and I could feel that I was getting shorter by the second.
By the goddess did the final result look good. Sure I now had sheep eyes, and my clothes barely fit my body anymore, but everything about what was now greeting me in Roxy’s short little makeup mirror made me feel like I finally had the body I wanted.
“You really turned out pretty hot if I can say so.” Roxy uttered as she looked over my changed appearance. “If you would have just said you’re trans I would have offered you the potion earlier you know.” I couldn’t make out if she was lying or not, but that didn’t matter. I wanted to know how she made this.. This witchcraft happen.
“How did you turn me into a girl so easily?” My eyes darted all over Roxy now, looking for anything that could reveal her secret.
“I am a witch hun. What you just gulped down, without even a second thought, was a gender change potion. You’re gonna need a refresh every week or else you're gonna go back to your old self, and I think we both know that that is something you wanna avoid. Now, get back in the car.” I got back inside, a thousand questions now in my mind while I was also too busy making sure that this was not another one of my nightmares and that I had really changed into a girl.
“This is real.” Was what I said when I went down my entire body with my hands, grabbing every single new addition as if it was a prized possession. There was still a part of me that was left unchanged but that was the one thing that I was personally okay with. “I need to learn how I can keep this real!” I nearly shouted, my mind shouting at me to keep this opportunity that has presented itself before me at this odd night.
“Well I did want to ask you to join my coven if you are interested. My tiny family spans the entirety of the black forest by now but I am always delighted to have another member join. You would have to cut out your former friends and quit your job but you will see that what I can offer in exchange will be very nice indeed.Not because we want to isolate you, we aren’t some sort of cult, but we have to keep our secret safe. If you do not accept I will still give you the gender change potion every week to your house, but nothing else. It is entirely up to you if you wish to join.” Roxy slowed down the trueno as we arrived at my destination, handing me a piece of paper. ”Call me once you feel like you're sure that this is something you wish to join. Learning witchcraft isn’t gonna be easy, but you will be able to help people like us. No need to pay me for the ride this time.” I simply nodded, stepping out of the car. I deliberately walked up the stairs towards the front door so that I wouldn’t fall on my face, now that my pants were sliding down my waist. I had to fiddle a lot to find the keys but after a while I found them, unlocking the door to my small apartment.
“Home sweet home.” I muttered, my cat greeting me with excitement, recognizing me in my new appearance. She knew that I was gone longer than usual and she doesn’t like being all alone in our apartment. Only a cat, my new cute self, and a lot of thoughts. I supposed it was time to pick a new name. Maybe Myra?
Roxy stopped the trueno outside her shop, feeling exhausted after the long drive back home. It was 3 am now, the only thing she wanted to do was fall asleep for the next 14 hours and do nothing. She opened up her shop, making sure nothing got stolen when she saw out of the corner of her eye something very shiny and shimmering.
“Could you at least give me a warning next time? I could have hurt you hun.” She said to the goddess that had entered the room silently floating over towards her.
“What fun would it be if I did do so? Didn’t you miss me my dearest?” The goddess moved in front of Roxy, far tinier than her usual appearance. She planted a kiss on her lover’s lips, laying her head down on her shoulder. ”Did you find the new lost sheep? The name she chose for herself is Myra.” She asked, rubbing her cheek on her shoulder.
“Yes I did. It was certainly a surprise to know that she knew about you.” Roxy said in a vindictive tone.
“A little push here, a little pull there and oops now she is trying a few things she otherwise wouldn’t. It’s not a bad thing if it is meant to help.” Roxy shook her head, carrying La Shay’ with her to their bed.
“Gosh do you know that you can sometimes be insufferable?” asked Roxy teasingly.
“Do you know that I will do what I want and you can’t stop me?” La Shay’ responded, sticking her tongue at her. Roxy hoped that the girl would call her. She knew when one of La Shay’s ‘lost sheeps’ would be a great witch, something in her told her that Myra would be one of the best. And she was excited for it. She fell asleep, softly counting sheep as she hugged her wife, one that had stayed with her for centuries at this point, thinking about what would come tomorrow.