THE PROMISE
by J R D
It was a little before 2 on a Tuesday when he got the call. He answered with
his usual, "Parker residence."
The voice on the other end of the line said, "Mister Shawn Parker, this is
officer James of the city police. There's been an accident. Your wife has
been seriously injured. You need to come down to Mercy General. Now."
He almost missed the cradle returning the phone to its base. He didn't even
shut off the computer where he was coding a program. He ran and got the
baby (little Alexander, the light of his life alongside his wife), put him in a set
of his most simple baby clothes, and rushed to the car. He loaded Alex into
the baby seat, and drove to the hospital.
As he went, he wondered what had happened. Just an hour before, June, his
wife, had left the house, saying that she just needed to get a few things from
the store. She said she had put Alex down for his nap, and he should have
no problems. But then he remembered she had acted a little funny when he
asked her how long she was going to be. She had said, "Oh, just a while,"
in a tone slightly louder than a mutter and gave him a peck on the cheek.
Thinking of that kiss, there was something strange about it. It had a...
finality to it, almost a good-bye kiss. He was going to ask her about it, but
when he looked up to her she blew him a kiss and all thought of asking her
anything left his mind. Then she backed out of the room, never taking her
eyes off of him until she had no choice. Had she known what was going to
happen?
Almost as soon as he thought it, though, he had an answer. She HAD to
know. June was a sorceress, and a prophet. She was one of the most
powerful, most accurate seers in the history of her magickal order. She
must've known. But why didn't she tell him?
He drove into the hospital parking lot, grabbed Alex, and ran into the
emergency room doors. Almost as soon as he was through them, he saw his
mother-in-law in a seat. It wasn't a surprise. June's mother, Mary, was
another sorceress and would've known the minute the accident occurred that
something had happened. But Shawn didn't have a problem with that. He
and Mary had a good relationship, with Mary often being a replacement for
the mother he had never had.
He ran up to her, asking, "What happened? Where's June?"
"She just got out of surgery. The doctors haven't told me much."
"But what happened? How did she get here?"
"She was involved in a car accident. The driver of the car who hit her said he
was driving along when a ball rolled out in front of him with a kid following
close behind. He slammed on his brakes, but he was moving too fast. But
then Mary runs out into the street, grabs the child and throws him out of the
way, saving him, but dooming her. The car struck her full on, putting her
here. I just don't understand why she didn't foresee this."
"I think she did. She was acting so weird when she left the house earlier. I
just don't understand why I didn't say anything before."
Mary looked him up and down, then said, "She spelled you. It prevented
you from stopping her."
"But why?"
"There's only one thing I can think of that would get her to not tell anyone
what she was planning or what would happen. A death confluence." Seeing
that Shawn didn't understand, Mary explained, "A death confluence is where
negative energy masses in an area. If there's anybody near it as it discharges,
it can result in their death."
"Why didn't she just avoid it?"
"The only way to avoid a death confluence is to avoid the area until the
negative energy discharges. The area where she was struck was outside a
park. Lots of kids, their parents, innocent drivers. If it was a death
confluence, then someone was bound to die there. She took it on herself so
that no one else would have to."
"But the doctors can save her? This doesn't have to be lethal?" Mary held
her tongue, unwilling to either answer his question or tell him a lie. But
Shawn understood her silence and asked, "What about your healers? Can't
they save her?"
"Only if she'll let them. If this is a death confluence, she won't let them heal
her to keep the negative energy from them."
Before they could continue their conversation, a doctor, dressed in hospital
scrubs covered in blood, stepped up to them. "Mister Parker?"
Shawn turned to him. "Yes, doctor? How is my wife?"
The doctor, barely able to get it out, said, "I'm sorry. The damage was just
too extensive. Quite frankly, I'm amazed she's still alive."
Shawn was too shocked to say a thing. Just then, a nurse stepped up and
said, "Excuse me. Doctor, mister Parker, Mrs. Parker has somehow
managed to shake off the anesthesia, and is asking for her husband."
Shawn looked to the doctor. He simply nodded, saying, "Go ahead. Your
wife needs you."
The nurse took him into the room with his wife, then left. The figure on the
bed asked, "Shawn, is that you?" June's voice was ragged and she was
clearly having trouble breathing.
Seeing June brought tears to his eyes. She had dozens of tubes running from
her to the machines around her bed. The only sound other than her was the
constant beep-beep of the heart monitor. But Shawn put on a weak smile and
said, "Save your strength, dear. The doctors say you're going to get better."
June's mouth turned up at the corners. "Shawn, never lie to a woman who
can tell the future. Besides, you're no good at it. I'm dying and I know it."
Shawn choked back a sob. "Why didn't you tell me what you were doing?"
"Because you'd've either stopped me or insisted on going in my place. I
couldn't allow that. I'm sorry, Shawn. But you must go on without me
because I couldn't go on without you."
"I don't think I can go on without you."
"You must. For Alex's sake."
"I'll try."
Speaking with total confidence, June said, "You will do more than try, my
love. You will succeed and prosper. In ways you never imagined."
"You've seen the future? What did you see?"
June, somehow, managed to smile. Her breathing became more ragged, and
she was forced to take many pauses to conserve her strength to keep talking.
"You'd... never... believe me. Love,... I can't... remember. Did you...
promise me, yet?"
"Promise you?"
"Guess... not. Promise me... something,... Shawn."
"Anything."
"Promise me... that no one... outside... the family,... the biological...
family... will ever feed... Alex."
Shawn was confused. "Just feed him? But why?"
June was forced to take a deep breath. "Promise me!"
Shawn took her hand. "Okay, June-bug, I promise."
June relaxed. "Shawn, hold my hand."
Shawn reflexively clenched her hand in his. "I am, June-bug."
For the first time, fear crept into her voice. "I can't feel you, Shawn. I can't
feel your hand."
Shawn lifted her hand to his chest. "Feel my heart, love."
A look of contentment came over June. "There you are." Shawn started to
cry, knowing the end was near. "Shawn, over the next few months you will
face many things which will give you cause to resent me, maybe even hate
me, but if you just stick to that promise, all will turn out right in the end."
Shawn couldn't imagine anything that would ever make him resent June,
much less hate her, but this wasn't the time to argue. "Okay, love."
The beeping of June's heart monitor changed to a more erratic pulsing. June,
much weaker, said, "Shawn, no matter... what... happens,... always...
remember... that..." June took a deep breath, "I love you."
Shawn wasn't even able to reply before the beeping of the heart monitor had
changed to the steady whine of a flatline. Shawn was only vaguely aware of
a group of people moving frantically around him. At some point, June's
hand and his were pried apart, and he was sent out to the waiting room. His
eyes were so blurry with water that he could barely see a thing, but was
aware of Mary's arms around him as he broke down in tears.
************
TWO DAYS LATER...
Shawn walked the living room, trying to console a bawling Alex. He had
been fitful and hard to deal with ever since his mother had died, but since his
two o'clock feeding, he had been crying constantly, and nothing Shawn
could do would help.
Shawn heard the doorbell and went to get it. When he opened the door and
saw Mary, he said, "Thank god."
Mary, real concern in her voice, asked, "What's wrong, Shawn? You look
terrible."
Shawn gave Alex to his grandmother. "I've been up since 2 AM. Alex
won't stop crying. He was never this bad with June. I think her death has
hit him awfully hard."
Mary scanned him with her magic senses. "It's not his mother's death,
although I'm sure that's making it worse. You are aware that your son has a
very large magic potential?"
"Yes. June and I discussed it. I felt that as long as he wasn't pressed into a
life of magic, it wasn't a big deal."
"But what you may not know is that a person with high magic potential
tends, as a baby, not to handle bottle formula real well. No one knows why,
but they only tend to take natural breast milk without problems."
"Great. Now what?"
"Well, there is a spell that will start a woman's breasts lactating. I could cast
that on a volunteer who could feed Alex."
"Could you cast it on yourself? Or have someone else cast it on you?"
"No. The spell won't work on a woman who has gone through menopause.
But I'm sure I can get someone from the coven to volunteer."
"Can you cast it on me? A man's chest has all the things necessary to feed a
child. It just never develops."
"I... suppose. But why?"
"I promised June. I swore I'd never allow anyone outside the family to feed
Alex. If you can't, then that leaves me."
"Well, the coven is considered family."
"No. She specified biological family only. I suspect to specifically exclude
the coven."
"She did? How strange. Well, there's always her cousin Amanda."
"And how long will it take for Amanda to get here? Even if she can leave
immediately, we're still looking at ten to twelve hours before she gets here.
And the rest of your family will take even longer, most of them not even
being in this country. And I'm an orphan. I don't even know if I have a
biological family. What's the problem? Won't the spell work on a man?"
"I have no idea. The spell has never been cast on a man. I think for obvious
reasons."
"So let's try it and find out."
Mary sighed. "You don't understand, Shawn. Magic isn't like science.
Actions A under conditions B do not always produce the same results C. The
effects of a spell can vary depending on the caster, the target, the time of day,
month, AND year, lunar cycles, planetary cycles, celestial cycles, as well as
any number of unseen influences. It will usually fall within a certain range of
effect, but since this spell has never been used on a man, I have no idea what
that range is."
"So try it and we'll see what happens."
"Shawn, I hate to say this... but forget the promise. Any member of the
coven would gladly volunteer to serve as a wet nurse."
"Even Alanna?"
"Alanna's bitterness towards you is the result of June's decision to marry
you. But if she were called upon to serve, she would for her love for June."
Shawn shook his head. "I'm sorry, Mary, but I never broke a promise to
anyone, much less the woman I love. If I have to break it for the well-being
of Alex, I will. But until we try all other options, I must stay true to my
promise."
"But-"
"Please, Mary. Just try. If it fails, we can discuss other options."
Mary thought about it. "Alright. But you're the first man this spell has been
cast on in known history. I want to document all of this."
"Okay."
Mary took Alex and placed him in his crib. "Focus on Alex's crying.
Knowing you are doing this for him should aid you in accepting the effects of
the spell."
"Should I take off the shirt I'm in?"
Mary thought about it. "Perhaps you should. In fact, maybe you should get
naked. That way if there are any strange physical effects, we can see them
immediately."
"Alright." Shawn quickly removed all his clothes, standing naked in the
center of the room.
Mary stood off and chanted her spellsong. As she chanted, Shawn felt the
weirdest thing. It was like he could understand every third word, but the
understanding left his mind as soon as the next word was uttered. It wasn't
the first time it had happened. The few times he had been present when June
had cast a spell, the same thing had occurred. He had always meant to ask
his wife about it, but somehow had never gotten around to it.
The power Mary summoned swirled about him, then concentrated on his
chest. He looked down and watched in fascination as the magic changed him.
It was subtle, and had he not been looking, he'd not have seen it. Shawn had
never been "buff", but neither was he extremely out of shape. But he did
have a bit of flab on his chest, and, as he watched, it rounded out, his nipples
becoming slightly puffier. When the spell finished, Shawn had breasts.
They were tiny, tiny things, and wouldn't even fill out a training bra (as if
you could find a training bra to fit a 6' tall man), and were noticeable only if
pointed out. Shawn reached up and squeezed his nipples. A small bit of
white liquid dribbled out on his fingers and he licked it. "Mmmm. That's
breast milk. Tastes just like June's."
"Do you have any paper? I need to write this down."
"Sure. I keep a pad in the computer desk for scratching down my thoughts
as I work."
Mary got the pad out of his desk, and started writing, speaking as she did.
"Only noticeable physical effects: slight growth of the mammary gland within
target's chest." She asked Shawn, "How do you feel?"
Shawn cupped the underside of his chest. "Well, to be honest, my chest
feels a lot heavier than this little growth would indicate. It feels like two
weights on my chest."
"Well, your chest is filled with liquid now, but I meant on a more esoteric,
emotional level. Notice any changes to your outlook on life?"
"What do you mean? I haven't noticed any urge to have a massive pair
hanging from my chest, if that's what you mean."
"Not exactly. Have you noticed any strengthening of your nurturing
desires?"
"Well, I feel an... anticipation, I guess would be the word for it. A desire to
actually put these things to use for Alex."
"I think you should do it then. We'll see if that has any further effects."
Shawn walked over and picked up his son. Alex had settled down a bit and
was no longer openly bawling, but was still gurgling in a discontented way.
Shawn sat down in a chair and cradled his son as he placed Alex to his
breast. Alex almost immediately latched onto the nipple and started suckling
hungrily. As soon as he did, Shawn felt a surge of sexual pleasure run
straight from his breast into his dick. Shawn had to fight to keep from taking
his dick in hand and stroking it. Alex quickly depleted the milk in one breast
and Shawn switched him off to his other nipple. Shawn experienced another
wave of sexual pleasure as Alex fed on his milk. It was only a short while
longer before Alex stopped, and yawned, falling asleep in Shawn's arms.
Shawn stood and put Alex back in his crib. He felt somewhat conspicuous
with his hard-on bouncing up and down in front of him as he moved, but
Mary was tactful enough not to say anything. Shawn said, "That was so
incredible. I didn't think it'd be that sexual. Was it like that with you and
June?"
"No. There was nothing sexual about it when I fed June. I gained pleasure
from the act, but it wasn't sexual."
"Weird. I think I almost came right there just from feeding Alex."
"Well, men are wired differently from women. Not to be too blunt, but how
are you planning to deal with... little mister happy?"
Shawn blushed. "Well, how would you expect me to deal with him? I'll
take a couple copies of my Playboy's into the bathroom and 'handle' him."
Mary sighed. "There's no delicate way to ask this. Would you handle it out
here? The spell was not designed to cause a sexual feeling in the breasts, but
you have commented that you have experienced that. It may have affected
your sexual performance in regards to... self-pleasuring. I'd like to watch
and record these events."
"I... don't think so."
"Shawn, please. You did say I could record the effects, and this could be
something that was affected."
"But-"
"Shawn, if you can think of one reason, other than you're just embarrassed,
I'll let it go."
Shawn thought about it, but had to admit that he really didn't have any reason
other than his own self-consciousness. So with a brief grunt of assent, he
took his dick in hand and started stroking it. He pumped himself for a while
until he sprayed his sperm out onto the rug. After he was finished, Mary
asked, "Did that take longer than usual?"
"I think so, but that may have been because I was expected to perform for an
audience."
"Understandable. You also produced a fairly large amount of semen."
"Well, I haven't... done anything since the morning June... died." Tears
came to Shawn's eyes. "She knew. Even that morning, she knew."
"Shawn, what's wrong?"
"Our lovemaking that morning. It was really intense. More intense than it
had ever been before." Shawn sobbed. "She knew it'd be our last time
together." Mary wrapped her arms around her son-in-law as he cried his
eyes out. After he finished, he asked, "Why couldn't she tell me? Why
couldn't she let me protect her?"
"Because she knew that your protecting her would mean your death."
"But that was my job. It was my job to protect my wife no matter the cost."
"I know. But prophets, male or female, tend to become manipulative. It's a
result of 'The curse of Cassandra.'"
"June was cursed?"
"Not exactly. You do know the reference?"
"Cassandra, a figure of Greek myth. Cursed by the gods to always know the
future, but to never be believed when she tried to warn others."
"Uh-huh. Well, all seers go through a version of the same thing. Sometimes
they see a future that the people involved in don't want to believe, so they
refuse to listen. As a result, the seer learns to manipulate others into doing
what they need to in order to get the best result. For some reason, June saw
this as the best course of action and carried it out without letting the rest of us
know what she intended."
Mary thought about it and continued, "In fact, I think she knew about this a
week ago."
"Why?"
"The spell I used on you is not widely used. About a week ago, though, out
of the blue, while June was feeding Alex, she reminded me of it. I thought it
was just a bit of memory coming from the reminder of Alex's feeding. But if
she hadn't reminded me of it, I probably wouldn't have remembered it so
quickly."
"So I guess this is what June had in mind."
"Having experienced it, do you want me to reverse the spell?"
"No. June promised me that if I stayed true to my promise, then everything
would work out in the end."
"Alright." She handed him the pad of paper. "Okay, over the next few days,
I want you to record everything you notice different."
"But you've cast the spell. Aren't the changes finished?"
"Maybe. Maybe not. Besides, you may have undergone other changes that
we haven't noticed yet."
"Like what?"
Mary shrugged. "I don't know. Like I said before, this spell has never been
cast on a man before. It's designed not to affect intellect or emotion, but
anything might result."
"What can I expect?"
"Anything. As far as I know, you might wake up tomorrow with an insane
desire to wear June's clothes." Seeing Shawn's shocked look, she said,
"Relax, I'm just kidding." Shawn breathed a sigh of relief, but Mary
mentally added, 'Mostly.' Continuing, she said, "But seriously, write down
everything you notice, whether you think it has anything to do with the spell
or not. If you feel you have to, write down what you think caused the
change, if not the spell, but write down everything regardless."
"Alright."
"Now do you need anything else? Someone to make a trip to the store?
More diapers? Anything?"
"No. I'm good."
"Okay. I've got a meeting with the coven, but if you need anything, just
beep me."
"Alright. Mary?"
"Yes?"
"I've always meant to ask you. You call yourselves sorceresses and
sorcerers, but isn't a coven a gathering of witches?"
Mary shrugged. "I suppose technically the word doesn't apply, but it's a
convenient word to use for our gatherings. Why?"
"Just curious. See you later."
After Mary left, Shawn walked over to the computer. As he walked, he
noticed the swish of his hair on his shoulders. He usually cut it before it got
that long, and, if asked, he probably would've guessed he had another couple
weeks before it got long enough to need a cut. He briefly considered writing
this down, and finally decided not to bother. Just because he needed a
haircut couldn't have been caused by the spell, could it?
************
THE NEXT DAY...
Shawn shifted in his sleep on the bed and was waken up by a strange tugging
on his head. When he sat up, his hair fell in long cascading waves around
his upper body. He guessed that it was almost a foot longer than it was last
night before he had fed Alex. He had fed Alex a total of three times since the
spell had been cast, including that first time with Mary watching. The second
time had been just before he went to sleep, and the third time had been Alex's
regular two o'clock feeding. Each time, Shawn had needed to masturbate
afterwards, but the need was becoming less with each feeding. And with the
last feeding, Shawn, at his most tired, had started playing with his breast
while pumping his dick. Now his hair was obviously growing out at an
accelerated rate. He had the presence of mind to write down the changes
before giving Alex his morning feeding and putting him down to sleep.
It was when he went to work on his computer that he noticed another change.
As he started the computer, he noticed that his nails constantly kept
interfering in his typing. He had always kept his nails trimmed and short, but
looking at them now, they had clearly grown out to a most unmanly length.
His fingers also seemed thinner, and the light hair that had been on the back
of his hand was now entirely gone. He briefly considered calling Mary, but
she would be by at about noon, and he decided he could wait.
He spent the morning working on some programs he had to get done and just
before noon fed Alex. He had decided to wear just a pair of shorts. He
might've worn a shirt, but nothing he tried on didn't irritate his now more
sensitive nipples. He was changing Alex's diaper shortly thereafter when the
doorbell rang. He called, "Just a minute," as he put Alex down to bed.
When he got the door, he saw Mary standing there. She looked up at him
and blushed. "Excuse me, is..." A look of recognition came across her face.
"Shawn?! Is that you?" Before he could reply, she dashed inside, pulling
him with her while slamming the door behind her.
"Mary, what's wrong?"
"Shawn, have you even looked in a mirror today?"
Shawn thought about it. Usually, in the morning, he brushed his teeth and
shaved, but this morning, he had been preoccupied with feeding Alex and
had forgotten these simple things. But what was the big deal? "So my hair's
grown out-"
"It's not just your hair. Go take a look."
Shawn went into the bathroom and took a look in the mirror. He was amazed
at what he saw. His hair wasn't the only change. His face had softened and
rounded. His eyebrows were now arched, looking like they had been
plucked. His eyes were softer looking and now had an almond shape to
them. And his lips were fuller, fuller to the point of being pouty, looking as
though they had just undergone a collagen treatment. He still looked like
himself, but only if you knew what to look for and what you were looking at.
But the real difference he noticed was that he now had breasts, real breasts.
No longer was it just a puffiness around his nipples. He had fully developed
mounds of flesh hanging from his chest. They were tiny, maybe an A cup,
but they were there.
Shawn looked down his body, looking for any other changes he might've
missed. His arms, from about half way down the forearm, had thinned out.
The hair, which had only been missing from the back of his hand that
morning, was now gone from the point where his arm was becoming thinner,
and was more sparse up to his shoulders.
Looking down to his legs, he noticed his feet were now smaller and more
tapered. And his legs, from about halfway down the calf to the foot, had
become thinner, and, like his arms, had lost their hair.
He almost staggered back out to the living room where Mary was waiting.
"How?"
"The spell obviously. It's the only thing that could explain so many changes,
so quickly."
"Can you reverse it?"
"I could end the spell and reverse its effects."
"But then I couldn't feed Alex."
"Maybe you should just forget the promise and let me contact one of the
girls."
"No, I promised June. Is there anything else that can be done?"
"I could call in someone a little more familiar with transformations, but..."
"But what?"
"Our best expert in this field is... Alanna."
"Oh." Shawn knew the raven-haired vixen well. She and June had been
lovers before he and his wife had met, and Alanna had always resented that
he had "stolen" June away. When Alanna came over (rarely, but inevitable
since they were both part of the same group of magic workers) she was, at
best, cold and indifferent to him, and if June wasn't around, openly nasty.
June never tolerated it if she found out, but Shawn tried not to make waves,
and didn't tell if Alanna made trouble and his wife didn't know. But now, if
he wanted to keep his promise to his wife, it seemed he had to put his trust in
her.
He took a deep breath and sighed. "Call her in. Just stay by my side. I
think that as long as I'm not alone with her I'll be okay."
"Alright."
Mary went over, took the phone, and made a couple calls. Then she and
Shawn chatted about nothing in particular for a half hour until they heard a
knock on the door. Mary answered it, then stepped aside as Alanna walked
in. From the first look at her face, Shawn remembered the phrase that
popped into mind when he first saw her, namely "Ice Queen". There was no
doubting that Alanna was beautiful, but it was a cold, untouchable beauty.
She could and had brought men to their knees with nothing more than an icy
stare.
She looked first to the older sorceress, saying, "Mary," then turned to Shawn
and said with a sneer, "Hello, Shawn. Or have you decided to make it
Shawna?"
Mary angrily said, "Alanna! You are here for a purpose, not to engage in
petty bickering. Are your personal problems going to interfere?"
Without so much as a crack in that icy visage, Alanna replied, "No, ma'am. I
shall do my duty as required by our by-laws." Alanna walked over to
Shawn, carrying what looked like a small doctor's bag. She set it down on a
table and opened it. Inside were a variety of items, some of which Shawn
recognized (a tuning fork, feathers, pencils), but some of it was just weird
collections of metal and wood. She took out some of the items and waved
them over his body. She took a few notes, did some other stuff with some
other items, wrote some more stuff down, then said, "Okay."
Mary asked, "Have you figured out what's happening?"
"I have. The spell has increased the sensitivity of your nipples. Not a big
deal for a woman, but with your male sex drive, you're getting excited just
from doing what the spell was designed to do. That interferes with what you
want, so your manhood is being moved out of the way."
"I'm becoming a woman? I don't feel any different."
"The spell was designed to affect only your body. Mentally, you're still the
same person, and will remain so. But physically, your manhood is
retreating."
"What about...?" Shawn looked down at his crotch.
"Your dick? Where do you think your manhood is retreating to? How big
are you?"
"How big...?"
Alanna gave an exasperated sigh and said, "Your dick. When fully erect,
how big is it?"
"About 6 inches."
Alanna snorted. "Average." She fished a ruler out of her bag and handed it
to him. "Go into the bathroom, get yourself nice and hard, and measure. I
think you'll be surprised."
Embarrassed, Shawn took the ruler and went into the bathroom without a
word. About ten minutes later, he returned, his shorts tenting around his still
hard member. "I'm up to 8 inches now. And I'm pretty sure I'm thicker
around."
Alanna said, "And the progress will only continue. Every time you feed
Alex, your manhood shrinks a little more into your dick. Your extremities
will change the fastest, but your breasts will also grow larger, and your torso
will become more womanly. But your dick will grow larger and thicker,
storing your manhood within it."
Shawn turned to Mary. "Why did June want this?"
Alanna asked, "June? What's she got to do with this?"
Mary said, "We've pretty much determined that June set in motion a specific
series of events that led up to this. As to why, I can't even hazard a guess."
Shawn took a deep breath and said, "She said this would be for the best, and
even though she kept things from me, June never lied to me."
Alanna snorted. "Says you."
Mary harshly said, "Alanna!"
Shawn said, "No, I want to know what she meant by that."
Before Mary could stop her, Alanna said, "June lied to you every day of your
married life. She never loved you. She just felt her lineage was too
important to let die. She married you just to produce your son."
"You lie!"
Mary yelled, "Alanna, that's enough!"
"No, I think he needs to hear the truth. Mary, I invoke upon you the oath of
witnessing. You are now obligated to tell me only truths this day. How did
June really feel about Shawn?"
"Don't do this, Alanna."
Alanna smugly repeated, "How did June really feel about Shawn?"
Mary took a deep breath and said, "She confessed to me that she loved him
with all her heart and soul."
Alanna's ice queen visage cracked into a shocked face. "No! You lie! She
told me-"
"She told you a lie. She loved you, Alanna, just not as much as you wanted.
When you asked her why she was marrying Shawn, she told you what you
wanted to hear. But she did love Shawn. I know this is true because she
told me on the day she intended to tell Shawn about her magic and the coven.
She told me because she was afraid to look into the future to see his reaction.
She confessed to me that had she been forced to choose between Shawn and
any member of the coven, or even between Shawn and her magic, she'd've
chosen Shawn hands down, and she didn't want me to be surprised."
Tears came to Alanna's eyes. "No."
"Sorry, Alanna, but you did invoke the oath of witnesses. I was obligated to
answer you to the fullest of my knowledge. The fact is, had Shawn not been
so tolerant of you, you'd've lost June altogether. She lived in fear of the day
you'd push Shawn so far he'd make her choose between you. She didn't
want to hurt you, Alanna, but Shawn was her first love."
Alanna backed away as though Mary and Shawn were lepers, screamed,
"No!" and ran from the house in tears.
After she was gone, Shawn said, "June never had anything to worry about. I
knew how important her magic, the coven, and even Alanna were to her. I'd
never have made her choose between me and any of them."
"That's one of the reasons she loved you so much."
"Thanks for reminding me. But June was right about something."
"What's that?"
"She said I'd come to resent her, and when Alanna told me what I had to look
forward to, I resented what June had done to me. But you reminded me of
our love. No matter how weird this is, I've got to trust it's for the best."
"Speaking of what Alanna told you, do you want to go back now? Reverse
the spell?"
"I want to. But I will keep my promise to June. How about you contact one
of June's other relatives? I can keep up under this spell for another day or
two."
"Actually,... It'll have to be longer than that. I made some calls last night.
Apparently, June gave all her female relatives information of things that now
have them occupied with other matters. Now it looks like about two or three
months, minimum, before any of them will become available."
Shawn sighed. "I guess June really did want this. I just wish I knew why."
"There's something else you should know. The longer a spell sits on a body,
the harder it becomes to reverse. If you wait till another female family
member becomes available, this is going to be pretty hard to reverse. If you
wait until Alex weans himself naturally from your breast, we'll have to start
over from scratch, as though your new body were what you were born
with."
"Well, I'd be lying if I said that didn't scare me."
"But?"
"But I've got to trust June. All evidence points to this being what she
planned. I don't know why, but I'm going to follow this through to the end,
regardless."
"Alright. You need anything else?"
"No, I'm good, thanks."
"Okay. But if you need me for anything, anything at all, don't be afraid to
call."
"I won't. Thanks, Mary." After Mary left, Shawn noticed that Alanna's little
black bag was still sitting on the table where she had left it.
A few hours later, when Shawn was feeding Alex, he could almost watch his
forearms shrink while his son suckled his breast. It was shortly after he put
Alex back to sleep that he heard a knock on the door. He opened the door to
see Alanna, her ice queen visage back in force. She said, "I left my bag
here."
"Yeah. It's right where you left it. I haven't touched a thing."
Alanna nodded, as though she had expected nothing less, and stepped in. As
she was packing up her things, Shawn felt a need to say something. "Alanna,
I'm sorry about how you learned about how June really felt about me."
Without looking back, Alanna said, "Don't. I asked for that. I invoked the
oath on Mary, sure I knew what the answer was." She finished packing up
and turned to him. "It just turns out that although she wanted you, she
should've stayed with me. *I* would've kept her alive, even if it meant
sacrificing my own life."
Alanna expected him to get nasty, or perhaps to throw her out. But he did
neither. Instead he collapsed back into his seat, sobbing. Through his tears,
he said, "Don't you think I'd've done the same? I'd've given my life for her.
She wouldn't let me. I would've died for her, but she wouldn't let me."
Shawn buried his face in his hands and sobbed openly. Alanna looked at him
and felt hollow inside. She had wanted him to suffer. To suffer as she had
suffered, both with the death of June and with the knowledge that she wasn't
June's number one pick for a life mate. But looking at him sob, it was clear
that he already was suffering and she was just rubbing salt in his wounds.
She felt little and nasty, and for the first time in a long time, the ice queen
melted. She sat on the arm of the chair he was in and wrapped her arms
around him. "I'm sorry, Shawn. That was petty of me."
Still sobbing, he said, "But you were right. She spelled me to not see how
strange she was acting. You wouldn't have been affected by her spell."
"No. But she'd've found a way." Shawn stopped sobbing and looked up at
Alanna. "June always had a way of getting what she wanted. And she
wanted to make sure no one else had to sacrifice them self. I hate to say it,
but she'd've made sure I couldn't have saved her."
Shawn sniffed a few times. "You think so?"
"I know so." Alanna grinned. "I remember this time when we were only 13
years old. She wanted to see this R-rated movie. I tried to talk her out of it,
but somehow she managed to talk me into sneaking into the theater. I never
could resist her."
"Alanna, could you tell me about her? About your time together when you
were young?"
"If you want, but I've got to warn you, we were lovers from a very young
age. Most of my memories were of our romance."
"I think most of her memories were the same, which is why she never
discussed you or her youth much. She didn't want to throw an old romance
into my face."
"But you want to hear about it now?"
"I want to know everything about her."
"Okay. I'll tell you my stories if you tell me yours. We'll share June
together."
They went into the kitchen and put on a pot of water for tea while they talked
about June. Two hours later, Alex needed another feeding, so Shawn
(whose breasts had been bouncing freely all this time) decided to feed him
right in front of Alanna. As the little baby suckled happily at Shawn's
bosom, Alanna commented, "I'm amazed that you're doing that."
"My son needs to be fed, and bottled formula won't do it. And I promised
June that only biological family would feed him."
"But you know what feeding him is doing to you. And yet you still do it."
"I promised."
"You're an amazing man, Shawn. Most men wouldn't let themselves turn
into a woman, no matter what they promised."
"Well, it's like you said. I'm not turning into a woman, my body is. I know
the difference."
Alanna snorted. "Most men wouldn't."
"No offense, Alanna, but I've noticed you don't have a very high opinion of
men."
"No, I don't."
"Any particular reason?"
Alanna didn't answer for a few seconds before saying, "When I was only
fifteen years old, I was raped by my gym teacher."
"Alanna, I'm so sorry! I shouldn't have pried."
"You weren't prying. You were just curious."
"Still, I brought up bad memories. I'm sorry."
"Thank you." Alanna remained silent for a few seconds. "Shawn, you're
something special. I can see why June fell in love with you."
"Thanks."
Alanna looked at her watch. "Look at the time. I'm going to be late."
"What for?"
"Late business meeting. A client's in town for just a couple hours on
layover. I've got to meet her at the airport."
"A client? What is it you do?"
"I'm an accountant." Shawn looked her up and down. "Yeah, I know. I
don't look the role."
"No, I could see you as an accountant."
"Yeah, sure. Tell the truth, what did you think I did before I told you?"
"Truthfully, a lawyer. I could see you in front of a jury, dispassionately
arguing your case."
Alanna laughed. "Most people say they think I would make a great
dominatrix."
Shawn grinned. "I could see that, too."
Alanna pulled out a piece of paper, and wrote down a phone number. "This
is my cell phone number. You need anything, and you just give me a call."
"Alright. Alanna, don't be a stranger. I enjoyed today, so if you ever want
to spend any more time reminiscing, you're welcome to stop by."
"Thanks. I'll take you up on that."
After she left, Alex started squirming a bit, and Shawn noticed his diaper was
full. As he changed his son, Shawn said, "I love you dearly, Alex, but I
can't wait till you're a little older and doing something more than eating,
sleeping, and pooping."
************
ONE WEEK LATER...
Shawn woke up and stretched. The first thing he did was go through his
morning ritual of looking at himself in the mirror. His body had become
fully feminized after only a few days, but his breasts had continued to grow
slowly for twice as long. He was now, with the exception of his dick, a
nicely developed woman with stats of 40-30-38. He didn't know his own
cup size, and, in fact, had yet to even try a bra. Most days, he went topless,
staying inside behind closed windows. Nobody in the neighborhood thought
anything of it. June was the public one of the couple, Shawn preferring to
stay inside and work on his computer.
A few neighbors had stopped by, and Shawn had introduced himself as
Rachel, Shawn's cousin, in town to help him with the funeral and post-
funeral arrangements. No one knew Shawn's family history and he still
resembled his old self closely enough that they accepted the story at face
value.
But Shawn was beginning to feel a little too much like a shut-in. He had to
get out and do something. Not go out to a store or anything like that, but just
get out and smell the fresh air for a while. He decided that he would go out
and wash the car. It had needed it since before June had died, Shawn was
just too preoccupied (understandably so). So he put Alex in his carrier, got
into his loosest sweats, filled a bucket full of hot soapy water, then went out
and attacked the car.
He was about half way done when he saw Alanna's car pull up. Alanna,
dressed casually in jeans and a T-shirt, stepped out of the car and he stepped
back and waved at her. When she saw him, she got a shocked look on her
face and dashed over to him. He was about to ask what was going on when
she pulled him by the arm back towards the house, pausing only long enough
to snatch up the baby carrier before dragging him inside. Inside she asked
him, "What did you think you were doing?"
Not understanding what she was having a problem with, he simply said,
"Washing the car? What's the big deal?"
She looked at him in amazement. "You really don't get it, do you?"
"Get what?"
"Take a look at yourself in the mirror."
Shawn walked over and took a look at himself in the hall mirror. His clothes
were soaked, not unexpected considering what he had just been doing. What
was unexpected was the effect it had on him. The clothes, his top in
particular, hung on him, clinging to his curves as he moved. The effect was
rather sensuous and gave him an instant hard-on. His pants tented out
around his now over one foot erection, creating a strangely erotic image.
Shawn could only utter, "Oh, my."
"'Oh, my' is right. Shawn, sweats are designed to absorb water; to lift sweat
away from the skin so as to accelerate cooling. Washing a car in sweats only
causes them to stick to you. When you had a square, normal man's body that
was no big deal, but with your new body, you wind up looking more naked
than naked."
"Well, whatever I wear, I'm going to get soaked."
"So wear a swimsuit top. Don't you have a bikini top or something? You're
supposed to look wet in that. It doesn't wind up being as big a draw."
"You're kidding."
"I know it sounds strange, but it's true. You go out there in a bikini top and
although you'll be ogled for a bit, the novelty wears off quick. But with your
sweat top soaked, your breasts become visible underneath your shirt, and
men will keep watching because they think they're seeing something you're
trying to keep covered."
"So I get ogled no matter what I do?"
"Well... yes. Shawn, I hate to point this out to you, but with the exception
of that rather prodigious member between your legs, you have the body of a
beautiful, sexy woman. You and I and the coven all know that you're really
a man inside, but to the rest of the world, you're a woman. I mean, your
breasts are what? Double D?"
"I'm... not sure."
"Not sure? Shawn, haven't you even tried on a bra, yet?"
"Nope."
"What about a blouse or dress?"
"Of course not."
"What have you been wearing? I notice when I come over, you're usually
topless."
"Well, that's how I usually go. Just pants or shorts. If I feel the need to
cover up my top, I'll pull on sweats or a loose T."
"That's it? Nothing more formal?"
"No. Most of my clothes don't fit me anymore. Only a few pairs of pants
will even cover this bubble butt I've now got."
"Shawn, I hate to say this, but you're going to have to get something more
formal. Or have you forgotten about June's funeral tomorrow?"
A few tears came to Shawn's eyes. "I... didn't want to think about that."
Alanna felt her own eyes tearing up. "I know. Neither do I. But... we have
to be practical. Since Shawn isn't going to be seen at his wife's funeral, his
cousin Rachel should be. And with your new body, that's going to mean
women's clothes. At the very least, a fancy, dress suit, if not an actual dress.
And a bra is pretty much mandatory. It would be highly improper for you to
show up at a funeral with those bouncing around freely under whatever you
choose to wear."
Shawn took a deep breath and sighed. "I guess you're right. So now what?
We go shopping?"
"Only if you really want to. I think it'd probably be better for me to take your
measurements and get you some clothes. Don't worry, I'll be conservative."
"Okay. I guess that'll work."
Alanna got her tape measure and quickly took Shawn's measurements. She
not only got his base three measurements, but the other measurements that
would allow her to get a collection of clothes for him; things like his inseam,
the distance from waist to armpit, and armpit to wrist, as well as a few
others. After she finished, she said, "Now the sixty-four dollar question. Do
you just want a black women's suit, or do you want to go all the way and
wear a dress?"
Shawn thought about it. Part of him wanted to say just a suit, but he also
realized that a suit, even when he was soft, might betray what he did have
between his legs. Even though he didn't care much what others thought of
him, he realized that he might have to fend off those who felt strong emotion,
either pro-sexual or anti-transgendered, towards transsexuals. He knew he
wasn't a true transsexual, but he was now a she-male, a woman's body with
male genitals. He decided to just forgo the hassle and said, "Might as well
make it a dress."
"You sure?"
"Yeah. Very loose fitting. It'll just be easier for all concerned."
"Alright. I'll be back in just a little while."
Alanna left and Shawn stripped out of his wet clothes. He got Alex and went
into the shower. He always showered with Alex. It allowed him to keep his
eye on his son while getting clean, and Alex did seem to enjoy being in the
water spray. After they finished and got dried off, Shawn gave Alex a quick
feeding and put him down to bed. He spent the next few hours working on
some computer programs before he heard a knock on the door. Before he got
up, the door opened and Alanna peeked her head in. "You decent?"
"Technically, no," Shawn said, "but I don't think it's anything you haven't
seen."
Alanna stepped in carrying a few bags as Shawn stood, but froze solid when
she saw his naked body. "Holy! I've seen the bulge, but I never... How
big is that?" she asked pointing at his flaccid, yet extremely large member.
"Hard it's a little less than 14 inches."
"Woah. That's bigger than anything I've ever had inside me."
"How many penises have you had inside you?"
"Just... the one. But I've had quite a few rather large dildoes inside me."
"Sorry. I keep putting my foot in my mouth."
"No. It's my own problem."
"Can't you solve it with magic?"
"Magic isn't a cure-all, Shawn. The best it can do would be to block out the
memory. But that wouldn't heal anything, and would actually slow my
healing. This is just something I'm going to have to face on my own."
"After all this time, you're still not able to face this?"
Alanna's face returned to its old ice queen state. "Rape is not something you
get over with a snap of your fingers. You try it and see how well you face
it."
Shawn saw the change to Alanna and apologetically said, "That WAS me
putting my foot in my mouth. I'm sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?"
Seeing that he was sorry, the ice queen relaxed a bit. "No. And I accept
your apology."
Trying to break the mood, Shawn used his best little kid voice and asked,
"So what'd you get me?"
A small smile came to Alanna's face and she softened once more. Jokingly,
she replied, "Everything a girl who was a guy only a couple weeks ago needs
to make it in the woman's world." She grabbed one of the bags she brought
in and pulled out a two piece swimsuit. "I got this for when you need to
wash your car. I figure we'll just throw out the bottom and you can wear
shorts or swim trunks."
"Makes sense."
With the bag in hand, she said, "Now for the more feminine garments I got
for you," and reached into the bag and pulled out a bra. It was a simple
white, cotton number without lace or frills, obviously built for durability and
function, and not for beauty.
"Doesn't seem too feminine, really."
"Well, we're going for basic. Now if you're ever really interested in going
all out, I'll buy you some frilly stuff. But you're not a cross-dresser or the
like. We're just trying to present an illusion to the world more in keeping
with the form your body has taken."
Shawn took the bra in hand and slipped his arms through it. When he had
trouble connecting it in back, Alanna gave him a hand, saying, "You should
practice this until you can get in and out easily. Until then, connect it in front
and pull it around your body. Although with your breast size, the friction
and constant readjustment from doing that should give you more than enough
incentive to learn to connect it behind your back."
"Okay."
Alanna once more went into the bag and pulled out a pair of panties. "I got
these for when you're wearing a dress or skirt. Actually I got a few pair, just
in case."
"In case of what?"
"In case you need to go a few days in a row wearing more womanly clothes.
I figure most days, when you're wearing pants and/or shorts, you can wear
your normal male underwear."
Shawn took the panties and stepped into them. "They seem a little loose in
the waist."
"I got a size too large to accommodate your penis. And you seem to need it.
The waistband may be loose, but you barely fit into the rest of it. Which is
why you should always wear your clothes, whether dress, skirt, or pants,
really loose, unless you want everyone to know about what you're packing
down there."
Shawn nodded his understanding. "So, I guess now it's time for the final
stage? The dress?"
"Not quite. Proper dress requires a slip." Alanna reached into the bag and
pulled out a simple, white slip.
Shawn took it from her, and slid into it. He smoothed it out, then asked,
"Now the dress?"
Alanna picked up a large box. "Now the dress." She opened the box and
pulled out a simple, black dress. True to her word, the dress was very
conservative, not only lacking any frills, but with a neckline that would
betray little or no cleavage and a hem that would fall around the middle of his
calves. Alanna helped him into it, and zipped him up. "There. You know,
Shawn, you don't look half bad."
Shawn stepped over to the mirror and took a look at himself. "I guess you're
right."
"You sound a little... down."
"I guess I am. It isn't every day a guy finds out he looks good in a dress."
Alanna stepped up behind him and put her hand on his shoulder. "Shawn,
there is no reason for you to feel depressed. The reason you look like you do
is just a side effect of the spell upon you. It doesn't change who you are. It
just changes what you look like."
"I know. But I never expected to ever look like... this," he said, waving his
hands down his body.
"Shawn, do you want me to reverse the spell? Since Mary cast the spell, it
won't be easy, but I think I could do it."
Shawn thought about it. "No. June told me things would work out if I just
stuck to that promise."
"Okay. But if you ever want me to try, I will."
"Thanks. So what's next, make-up?"
"No, I didn't get any. Rachel has never been seen with any, so you can go
with the natural look. I also got a hat with a veil for the funeral. It's kind of
a dated look, but it's not so uncommon that you'll look strange with it."
"Thanks. Now what?"
"Stockings and heels." Alanna got out a couple packages of stockings and
handed one of them to Shawn. "I figured the best way to show you how to
put these on was to demonstrate with a pair of my own." Alanna sat down
and stripped off her tennis shoes and socks. She waited for Shawn to take a
seat where he could see her and got out the stockings. She put them on
slowly, giving a running commentary on what she was doing for Shawn's
benefit. Shawn followed her instructions, and although he managed to avoid
snagging the hose, it did take a couple tries to get the seams even close to
straight.
After he got them on, Alanna handed him a pair of low heels to put on. He
slipped his feet into them and walked around, feeling he was teetering on top
of spikes. When he commented on it, Alanna responded, "If you're in those
shoes for any length of time, you'll get used to that. Those are actually pretty
low and wide as far as heels go." Alanna smiled mischievously. "If it turns
out that you need more practice than just those, we can go for sudden
immersion and get you a pair of 5" stilettos."
Shawn knew she was only kidding, and replied, "I don't think that'll be
necessary."
Alanna laughed. "But seriously, you should practice in those tonight so
you're not stumbling all over the place. A few hours should do it. You can
spend most of the funeral in a chair, so you won't have to worry too much."
"Okay. So now what?"
"We're finished. We were trying to create the illusion of womanhood, not
create a woman. Just try to limit interaction with others. You still don't
much act like a woman."
"Got it."
"So what do you want to do?"
"I want to finish cleaning my car. Half clean, it looks worse than it did
before I started. Want to help?"
Alanna shrugged. "Sure. Why not?" Alanna grabbed the base of her shirt,
underneath her breasts, formed two tails, then tied them into a knot under her
breast. "All ready."
Shawn turned around. "Unzip me?"
Alanna unzipped him, joking, "I'll bet this is the first time in history that the
guy took longer to get ready than the woman did."
"Hah-hah. Very funny." Shawn quickly got out of his female clothes, and
put back on male boxers and a pair of shorts that Alanna had bought him in a
woman's design to fit his new form. He then, with Alanna's help, put on the
bikini top.
"So now you're dressed," she commented.
He looked down his own body. "This is hardly 'dressed'." He wasn't really
angry or upset, but his statement was tinged with a bit of sarcastic irony.
"True, but it is, technically at least, decent. Come on. If we work together,
we can get this done in no time at all."
They went back outside and worked together to clean the car. Alex slept
peacefully in his basket, which was nearby, but out of the way. As they
finished, Alanna stepped close and whispered, "You know you make a pretty
girl. And you sure know how to shake those ta-ta's."
Shawn grimaced and almost turned on her to say something nasty, but when
he saw the grin on her face, he knew she was just teasing. "Alanna, would
you mind a bit of constructive criticism?"
Alanna looked at him with suspicion. "I suppose not."
He started, "When washing a car," then he quickly blurted out, "never tease
the guy with the hose!" while turning the nozzle on her. She shrieked like a
little girl, and tossed her rag at him. She started around the car, throwing
other rags and sponges at him. Finally, she ran out of ammo, and charged
the hose, managing to wrestle it away from him. It was his turn to run a bit,
before he grabbed the wash bucket, throwing the wet, soapy water at her.
That distracted her long enough for him to get behind her and grab her, lifting
her up, both of them laughing like kids.
"Give up?!" he asked.
"I give!"
He put her down, and when she turned to look at them, their eyes caught
each other. For them, they only looked at each other for a moment, but
strangers looking on noticed that these two pretty women stared at each other
overlong, staring until another car drove up. When Shawn and Alanna saw
Mary pull up, they stopped their game and let go of each other.
Mary got out of the car, and before either could even wave hello, she charged
them, grabbing both by the arm and dragging them towards the house.
Shawn swept up Alex as they went by, Mary dragging all of them inside.
Inside, Mary saw the bags of clothes, and turned to Shawn. "Were these
clothes your idea?"
"Well, no-"
Before Shawn could say anything more, Mary turned on Alanna. "What are
you trying to do? Are you trying to punish Shawn indirectly by feminizing
him? Tricking him or forcing him into women's clothes?"
Alanna was shocked. "NO!" She turned to Shawn. "No, I swear!"
Before either Shawn or Alanna could say anything more, Mary said,
"Alanna, I invoke upon you the oath of witnessing. What was your intent in
getting Shawn into women's clothes?"
Alanna, knowing that the oath would help exonerate her, definitively said,
"My only intent was to help him. As much as Shawn inside has not changed,
his body is now that of a woman. Unless Shawn wants to become a shut-in
and a recluse, he now has to accommodate for that fact."
Mary, hearing the words from Alanna and knowing she couldn't lie under the
oath, was mollified, but not happy. "Fine, but know this, the heads of the
coven have determined that Shawn is not to be pushed into anything. Any
ideas for anything he does must come from him. Understand?"
Alanna meekly said, "Yes, ma'am."
But before Mary could say anything more, Shawn said, "Mary, your coven
heads are wrong."
Mary was amazed. "Shawn, are you saying that Alanna did what you
wanted? That you wanted to be in women's clothes?"
Shawn gave her a look like she was stupid. "No. But Alanna was right. If I
ever want to leave this house looking like this, I've got to dress the part.
What were you going to do for the funeral tomorrow? Let me go dressed in
sweats? That's the only thing I've got that fits any more. Or maybe you'd let
me skip saying good-bye? 'Cause I sure wouldn't have thought of this."
"That's why she shouldn't have done this."
"That's why she should've. Mary, right now, I desperately need all the
friends I can get. Not friends who will pay lip service to the word, but
friends who will tell me what I need to hear, even if it's something I don't
want to hear."
"You sure you're okay with this?"
"I have to be. Alanna's right. Unless I want to withdraw from society
altogether I have to adjust to having this new body."
"Then I'm sorry. To both of you. I should have been more thoughtful of
what you were going through."
Alanna said, "No problem."
Shawn said, "But I have one more problem."
"Yes."
He pointed to his arm where Mary had grabbed him. "I am getting a little
tired of people grabbing me by the arm and dragging me around like a rag
doll. And this goes for both of you. So the next person who does it, gets
turned over my knee and spanked. Got it?"
Both ladies smiled, but said with mock fear, "Got it."
"Good. Now would either of you like something to eat? It is almost dinner
time."
Mary said, "Nothing for me. I just stopped by to see how you were doing."
Alanna said, "I can stay."
After he excused himself and went into the kitchen, Mary said, "I really am
sorry, Alanna."
"No, you were just trying to protect Shawn. And with the way I've been
treating him in the past I can understand why you might feel I was someone
to protect him from."
"You've really grown up, Alanna."
"Thanks." Mary gave Alanna a hug and left. Alanna went into the kitchen
where Shawn was making a salad. "I want to thank you for defending me."
"It was no problem. You didn't do anything wrong."
"Thanks, anyways. Need any help?"
"Sure. Get a couple pork chops out of the freezer and stick them in the
microwave to defrost 'em."
As Alanna did as he asked, she couldn't help but stare at Shawn's "bubble
butt" as he moved around. She thought, 'It's too bad Shawn really is male.
He does make a cute woman.'
************
THE NEXT DAY...
At the funeral, Rachel made a beautiful appearance. "She" cried real tears
during the eulogy (performed by Mary) and played the good hostess, saying
good-bye to the attendees after the services. When people asked about
Shawn, he stated that Shawn had had a tearful breakdown and was unable to
attend the funeral. The guests told "her" to give Shawn their best wishes.
After the funeral, Shawn, Alanna, and Mary went back to his house, where
Shawn had a real breakdown, sobbing shamelessly. Mary and Alanna were
there for him, holding him while crying tears of their own. After the crying
fit, Mary and Alanna put Shawn to bed, and slept the night there.
When they all woke up, Shawn was feeling much better and the three of them
spent the day reminiscing.
************
ONE MONTH LATER...
Shawn drove down the highway towards home.as Rachel, had just finished
with a business meeting with one of Shawn's clients. The behavior wasn't
unusual. Shawn was a bit of a recluse, and June had handled most of the
business side of his freelance programming, so no one batted an eyelash
when "cousin Rachel" took over the business dealings rather than Shawn.
The meeting had gone well and Shawn had arranged for a good price for his
work, assuming he could get the programming done before the deadline, but
that shouldn't be a problem. He'd have to put a lot of his time into it, but it
should be finished on schedule.
As he drove, Shawn was tempted to strip off his blouse and bra. He still
wasn't comfortable in women's clothes, even if he did recognize the
necessity of wearing them. He also didn't see how women could stand them.
The bra straps alone were a pain in the ass. Add on the multiple layers,
lingerie, slip, skirt, and blouse, and he was frying in the Autumn warmth.
Alanna asked him why he didn't just wear business suits rather than dresses
and skirts. His reply was that the open bottom was the only thing that helped
keep him cool. The worst part was, it was that time of year where it was
chilly enough in the morning to need a coat, but it warmed up enough later
on, that the coat become just an extra weight that he had to carry around.
But at least his home life was looking up. It still hurt to remember June, but
at least Mary and Alanna were there to help him through the worst of things.
He was still feeding Alex regularly, but at least his son could handle some
solid foods now (mostly strained vegetables that he had more fun throwing
around the room) and Shawn could get some business done with Alanna or
Mary babysitting. But, even so, Shawn didn't like spending a lot of time
away from Alex. So Shawn was now speeding his way towards home to the
light of his life.
But it was that very impatience to get home that brought him his troubles. As
he drove down the road, he saw the lights of a police car flashing in his rear
view mirror. He pulled over to the side of the road, got out his license and
waited as the officer made his way up the sides of the cars. But as the officer
approached, Shawn realized something. His license still had his old male
identity. He had nothing official related to "Rachel".
The officer stepped up to the window and said, "License and registration."
"I'm sorry, officer. The car belongs to my cousin. And apparently when I
ran out of the house this morning I grabbed his wallet instead of mine. I'm
afraid I don't have any I.D. on me."
The officer took the I.D. and registration, then looked Shawn over. Finally,
he said, "I'm going to need you to step out of the car, ma'am."