"I think I hate you" My breath was ragged. My transformation didn't touch my muscle mass, I think, but even at my best physical condition, this would have been hell.

I should have gone and trained with mom.

"Aren't you supposed to have done rigorous army training when you were younger? We've barely been here for four hours." Fanny didn't even look winded.

"You're crazy." I managed to exhale.

My legs may be giving out soon, but the worst was my mental exhaustion.

I thought the black jeans and green cotton Uni sweatshirt would be enough to escape my friends sexual harassement, and I was mostly right. But it made her think I urgently needed a full rework of my whole wardrobe, and so she brought me to nine different stores, to try out what felt like two-thousand outfits. I was currently carrying four bags full of clothes, some of which I had not given my approval to buy, not to mention wear. As you may remember, my friend is a pervert, and I think the last two outfits were only there if I wanted to reorient my professionnal career into erotic modeling. Or worse.

"You never know." She had tried to reason with me.

Alright, why the second one then, I asked.

"In case the first isn't appropriate." She had answered.

The second one was way worse than the first.

That's when I had a hunch she was simply using this shopping trip as revenge for me not contacting her about my problems.

I thought it was fair, but then came the last two stores, and those had put the final nail in my coffin. It wasn't fair anymore.

If you have ever been dragged to an underwear shop as a guy, you would only be grazing the torture I had to experience. Because even then, you wouldn't have had to actually try the lingerie inside (I hope).

I tried my best not to check myself out in the changing booth's mirror, but Fanny didn't feel the same restraint. All saucy comments I may have dodged before, came back crashing down hard in there. She also forced me to give detailed opinions on every single one of the underwear sets, so I had to watch the mirror and ignore the unwanted arousal invigorating my new nether regions.

And here we were, going for the third time in a row, to the "last store".

Shoes.

My brain may have shut down for some time, I just remember going out of the second shoe shop with a fifth bag filled with different kinds of brand new torture devices.

Well no, most of them were flats, work shoes, city shoes, but I resented my now ex-best friend about the two pair of medium and high heels.

I'd die before those got on my feet again.

Fanny stayed for dinner that night, and Henry unexpectedly joined us. My parents were overjoyed, well my father was, my mother stayed mostly impassive.

Henry was Belgian, two years younger than me and Fanny, but devilishly smart. Not intelligent like my father was, who seemed to know everything and was an expert in molecular chemistry, no Henry was a genious in art, and strangely in politics and economy. I think he sold four paintings in total in five years, and two-hundred graphic drawings. Pretty much nothing right? They were all perfect, and not only in my opinion. With one sale, he made enough money to buy himself and Fanny a small house near Bern.

Honestly he is one of the most interesting people I know.

That's why I was so surprised to see him out of it, outside my home's front door.

"Henry! What a pleasant surprise!"

No reaction.

"Henry, you okay?"

My brown-eyed friend smiled anxiously.

"Erm? Am I okay?" He didn't seem quite sure himself. He looked at Fanny who had appeared behind me. "Chaton who is this girl looking an awful lot like Sias?"

Oh the bitch, she didn't tell him.

Wait, I should have been the one to tell him.

I looked at my best friend behind me.

"You deserve him to be angry at you" Her eyes were saying to me.

"Fan..." I began menacingly.

She cut me off.

"Well sugar, it is Sias, but I think I better let HER explain what happened to HER, HERSELF, don't you think."

And she left to help my father with dinner.

"Is it Henry?" I heard him say.

"Yup, I hope he breaks your ex-son's face."

"Henry wouldn't do that. He needs his hands for work."

Oh, that was the problem alright?

I was the one with impossible new worries, but I was the one getting bullied.

U N F A I R

Henry was the one who came to my rescue. The sweetest guy, I tell you.

"I guess you didn't tell Fanny either?" He asked me with a grin.

"Nope, I was gonna, but dad made a preemptive strike."

"Were you really?" He asked me. There was no judgment in the question, just curiosity.

"Yeah... I would've waited a bit though, to get my bearings more and so on."

"Your dad did good then, the more you'd wait, the more she would've hated you for it."

That made me laugh.

"Yup, fair enough."

"So...Sias right?"

"Yup that's me."

"Did you go to Thailand instead of Japan?" He waited for me to answer but he looked slightly hurt.

"Oh" I understood what he meant. "No, no, I didn't lie to you guys, you know I wouldn't do that. I did go to Japan as I said. Let's say I got experimental'd drugged, things went to shit for a week or so, a crazy magic businessman wanted to take back a thing from grand-father, that he apparently gave to me without anyone knowing anything about, me included."

He scratched his head. "Erm, I didn't get all of that, you're gonna have to explain all of it in more details in front of a beer, or maybe sake, did you bring some sake back?"

Japanese fan he was. Fanny was worse.

"Nope sorry, didn't really have the leisure to bring back souvenirs. But on that note, I need to tell you about a proposal I have for you and Fanny."

His mouth opened, no sound came out.

"What?" I asked.

"Well, with how you look and sound now, you'll need to be careful about how you say some things."

I was confused.

"You sounded really sultry." He explained.

"What!?"

"Yup, you've always liked those double innuendo sentences, but well, let's say that now, it's way more effective."

"Oh, fuck me."

"Nope, can't say that either."

A short silence.

I saw sparkles in his eyes.

I began to laugh, and he joined in with me.

"Well come on in, we'll discuss it with my parents and with Fanny, I didn't actually manage to explain anything to her while we were out shopping." I turned around and got inside.

"Oh" I heard Henry exclaim, and after a few seconds. "So that's where you got those black panties from?"

I looked back at him in horror.

"How could you possible know?"

"Your new skirt is crooked at the back."

Did I really have to embarass myself in front of all my friends today?

I fixed it, mortified. Acting 100% too feminine for my tastes again.

Then a thought came to mind.

Wait a second...

Fanny barged out of the kitchen. The culprit always comes back to the scene of the crime after all.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

"Sias, I told you not to seduce my man!" Her anger was faked, mine only partly.

"Fan. Did you perhaps play with my skirt when I was welcoming Henry? You were behind me if I remember well."

She gulped. I didn't smile like that very often after all.

"(ﾉ≧ڡ≦) Teehee~! " She finally answered.

Henry laughed furiously behind me.

I sighed.

"I want new friends."

"Knowing you, they'll be even worse, you're lucky to have us." Fanny commented.

I sighed again.

"Yeah."

That evening was one of the best breaks I had. I felt back home for the first time, and I realized I had missed it. Henry was really supportive with all that had happened, and accepted to go back to Japan with me. Fanny didn't even bother answering, she actually felt insulted I had to ask.

"You would do it in a heartbeat if it was about me." Was the only thing she said.

Now my parents were another story.

New paperwork, passport and identity card would take a few weeks, so they insisted I went to my mother's classes.

"Miss Hailey's right, you need to get used to your new body in other ways too." Fanny added.

"Ooh?" My father commented.

My mother coughed.

"Fanny, when you were fifteen I found you in your bedroom with..." I began threathening her.

"I'llshutupandnevertalkaboutthismorningeveragainIpromise." She rushed.

"Honey, there's nothing wro..." Began my father.

I stared. He shut up.

An awkard silence surrounded the dinner table. Broken by the muffled laughter of Henry.

Unexpectedly, it was my mother who first giggled uncontrollably out loud.

Everyone quickly joined in.

Even I began chuckling.

The morning after, I prepared for bootcamp hell. A full week at my mother's arena, dojo, special ops training room, however you wanted to call it. That was the deal for me to go back to Japan. To start my life again.

I changed in my new sports clothes, Fanny had followed my mother's recommendation to the letter about the sports clothes, but couldn't resist adding her touch afterwards. I looked at the cute girl in the mirror. I was a bit troubled by the sports bra underneath my form-fitting shirt, and those shorts were definitely too short to be called decent.

Oops, I almost went and did something embarassing again, and I didn't have time for that. To be honest I think I would have otherwise. The first taste of it yesterday had been horribly addicting.

I put on a loose jogging, and the same sweatshirt as yesterday.

My mother was waiting for me downstairs.

"Hurry up, we're gonna be late, you've got fifteen minutes to eat and get ready."

I looked at the clock over the kitchen's sink. 9 O'Clock.

"Isn't your first lesson at 11? I've got plenty of time."

She clicked her tongue.

"We're not going with the car, we're going for a run. Fourteen minutes Sias."

"Oh fuck m...well shit, yes sir..." I groaned.

...

Well thank god for the sports bra, it was life-saving. The swedish genes really didn't help with running.

The small modern building in front of us was situated in a wooden area, a small parking, empty for now, stood next to it.

It wasn't far away from the national road. But it felt like it was hidden deep inside the woods because no other structures were allowed to be constructed here.

The reason was that we were in a national park here, and that the building also served the purpose of a park ranger outpost.

If there was a waterfall nearby, it would have been the most caricatural training camp location ever.

There were showers though, and that's where I was headed.

"Sias." My mother called out to me.

"Yes?"

She pointed to the sign over the shower room door.

"Erm?" I didn't understand. What was it about the stick figure of a man that... Oh.

"Seriously?"

My mother shrugged her shoulders.

"You are gonna have to get used to it."

"There is no one else here!"

"There will be in ten minutes. I don't want to have to explain why there is what undoubtebly looks like my daughter in the men's shower room."

"Please don't make me take a shower with you." I pleaded.

She laughed devilishly.

Damn swedes and their absence of body privacy.

I will never talk about what happened afterwards. Let's just say the woman's tile floor is rather well-maintained.

No one was there when we finished showering.

My mother was whistling innocently.

We entered the dojo.

You could see it was truly being cared for, the place looked beautiful. A boxing ring was standing on the eastern side of the big room, the left was a more classic tatami squared training ground. I knew there was some gym equipment in a back room somewhere and a track dedicated to running outside that circled around the forest.

But most of the martial art equipement was here. Training swords and a few real ones were hanging from the wall. They were all locked tight to the wall, and you needed a special key to unlock the real ones. One I only knew my mother to have.

She took the key out, unlocked the real swords, and threw one towards me.

She had taken a medieval longsword. Per usual.

My weapon was a katana. I unsheated it naturally, old habits taking control, and checked it out.

"Is this supposed to be a joke?"

She looked at me, unfazed. In apparence, I knew her well enough to knew she was having fun.

"I thought that you would rather use this, you wanting to go back to Japan and all."

I put the sword back in it's sheath.

"Please. The blade'll break after two parries, and it's way too dangerous without adequate protection."

They may be real swords, but they were dulled, as such a hit would hurt, a lot, but probably not cut you. Except the katana, it was fragile, but it could still cut through unprotected flesh.

"You think you'll touch me?" My mother's tone was dead serious.

Instincts called out to me.

I studied her posture. Her tanktop didn't hide much of her strength. And I could almost see the energy wanting to pour out of her muscles. She wanted a fight.

"Really?" I asked, despair filling my voice.

She answered with a grin.

I didn't unsheath my sword again. I needed the scabbard to protect the blade.

Hailey Skröskind ran towards me, passion filling her eyes.

I hated training with my mother.

The first hit was a test. She wanted to judge how good I still was. So I faked being really shit.

Wasn't that hard.

The poke at my left side wasn't too bad, but the hit still winded me out.

"Do you think I'm stupid Sias?"

Something bothered me at the corner of my eyes, a presence, but I couldn't be bothered right now. I had pissed my opponent off with my failed bluff.

Her sword always stood if front of her, the hits were quick, not strong. To be that fast with that big of a sword was almost inhuman. It also meant that to attack her, you needed to go through more than 1 meter of steel.

I parried stab after stab. Dodged some too. She was trying every spot in my defence, trying to break my balance with every strike. I held my ground, falling back and advancing whenever I needed to.

I was waiting. I steadied my breath, concentrated. I was waiting.

For the one step too far.

The one mistake.

After maybe five minutes of this constant flurry, I saw my chance.

It came when she suddenly stopped stabbing and went for a slash towards my right arm.

I stopped it with the point of my scabbard, the shock vibrated through my bones, I let it pass. I unsheated my blade.

My slash, almost a blur, went straight for her stomach, it would be a shallow cut.

I fell on my butt.

"Fucking hell." I said while holding my cheek.

"Language on the training ground!" My mother reprimanded. Her sword was down, pointing to my forehead.

I pushed it aside, and grabbed her held out hand to get back up.

Before my slash had even got close to her, she had puched me in the face.

Simple, effective, perfect.

"You're not that rusty after all, t'was a good strike." She observed.

I only grunted back.

"We'll continue later, give me the sword." As I did as instructed, she looked behind me and shouted. "I hope everyone ran and warmed up before coming in here!"

"Yes M'am!" I heard ten or so voices answer simulteanously.

I looked behind me.

My mother's students, obviously, were watching me with curious stares. I recognised some of them. Top athletes I only saw on TV, and some old ones I met before. Four I didn't know. One of them actually didn't look at me with interest, but with jealousy... and excitement? She was cute, and with obvious mixed heritage in her traits, she was pretty much my type. I would have to guess japanese and dutch.

She was also the sole person training while wearing a kimono, a black belt and a Hakama.

"Begin with regular exercices! Also this is Sias, she'll be here to get back into shape for a week. If I see you being nice to her, I'll personnaly handle your training next." This wasn't the promise of fun, far from it. I just got handed over as meat to be hit constantly. "Frei come here." She concluded.

Everyone quickly went to what looked like their designated positions, they moved around like a well-oiled machine. The kimono girl came towards us.

I had guessed that would be Frei.

"Yes sensei?"

"Follow us we have something to discuss."

"Sensei if I may?"

"Yes?"

"Didn't you have a son called Sias?"

I looked at the ceiling.

"Yes."

Frei looked at me, then at my mother, perplexed.

"Come in the office, I'll try to explain the best I can."

"But she has bigger boobs than I do..." Said Frei quietly.

I was seriously questioning my potential bodyguard's sanity if that was what she couldn't believe in this whole story.

"They're C-cup, not that big, I could have been like mom, that would have been soul-shattering." I felt obligated to say.

"We're in the dojo, don't call me mom." Corrected my mother.

"Y~es" I said cheekily.

"Also, I'm pretty surprised you know your proportions already."

I pinched my nose, those questions should officially be banned between a mother and her son/daughter.

"I went shopping with Fanny, what do you think happened?"

Frei, who looked so aggressive in the dojo, was being extremely timid right now. She looked like she wanted to say something, but didn't dare interrupting us.

I helped her out. Her squirrel look was putting me off, I think I prefered her angry stares.

"Frei, you want to say something?"

"Erm yes." She began "So you have been drugged and became like this" She looked a tad bit too long at my breasts "But you want to go back to Japan and need help in case someone still wants to hurt you?"

"That's it." Nodded my mother.

I had a doubtful look at the young girl, she looked barely twenty, and was smaller than me, way bigger than a normal japanese girl mind you, probably due to her mixed genes, but still not tall.

She bowed her head. I hadn't seen anyone do that since Kyoto.

"I would be honored to help, Miss Sias, oh should I say Mister?"

"Sias."

"Sias then, I have, unfinished business, in my home country. As such, it is an opportune proposal that I want to accept. Nonetheless, I saw how you looked at me right now. I saw how you fought with Skröskind-sensei (Her pronunciation of the swedish name was perfect) I would like to prove myself to you.

"Sensei?" She looked for my mother's approval.

My mother was obviously waiting for that.

This test wasn't needed, honestly. I may have looked at her like that, but it was more of a bad habit than anything. My mother praised her. That sufficed for me.

I knew what would be coming now.

I held my throbbing cheek. The pain from the last sparring session hadn't ended, and here I was going for another one.

Joy.